U.S. judge dismisses lawsuit against India PM Modi over 2002 riots

(Reuters) - Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will not have to face a U.S. lawsuit claiming he failed to stop anti-Muslim rioting in 2002, a federal judge in New York ruled on Wednesday.

U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres upheld the U.S. Department of State's determination that Modi is entitled to immunity as a sitting head of government from civil lawsuits filed in U.S. courts.

The lawsuit, filed in September by an obscure human rights group on the eve of Modi's maiden visit to the United States, made international headlines at the time, though officials from both countries brushed it off as a distraction.

Joseph Whittington, the president of the human rights group American Justice Center and a city council member in Harvey, Illinois, acknowledged in September that the case had little chance of succeeding but said there was victory in "symbolism."

Babak Pourtavoosi, a lawyer who represented the center, and Whittington did not immediately respond to requests for comment.