India, May 21 -- Norwegian journalist Helle Lyng has defended her confrontation with Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his Norway visit, saying it was the duty of a free press to question powerful leaders and reject "controlled" political appearances.

In a commentary published in Norwegian newspaper Dagsavisen, Lyng wrote that her now-viral question to Modi - "Why don't you take some questions from the freest press in the world?" - was rooted in Norway's commitment to press freedom.

"I do not celebrate Norway's Constitution Day on a Sunday only to refrain from using my freedom of the press on a Monday," she wrote in the piece

The controversy erupted earlier this week during PM Modi's visit to Oslo for the India-Nordic Summit. At a jo...