Manmohan Singh and HD Deb Gowda will not attend the G20 dinner. (File)
New Delhi:
Former Prime Ministers Manmohan Singh and HD Dave Gowda will not attend the G20 banquet hosted by President Drupadi Murum on Saturday, citing “health reasons”.
Former prime ministers and state chiefs, including those from opposition-controlled states, have been invited to the gala dinner, according to people familiar with the matter.
Both Singh and Deb Gouda informed the central government that they would not be able to attend the dinner. “I wish the G20 summit a great success,” Gowda told X.
Mamata Banerjee, Chief Minister of Trinamor and West Bengal, confirmed to attend the event. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Punjab Chief Minister Bhawant Man are also likely to attend the G20 dinner, according to people familiar with the matter.
Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Suk will also visit the capital on Sept. 9 to attend the president’s dinner, his aide confirmed. Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar is also reportedly likely to attend the dinner.
Meanwhile, parliamentary sources said opposition leader Malikaljun Kalge, who holds a constitutional position equivalent to the Union Minister of the Armed Forces, was not invited to the dinner.
Asked about Khaji not being invited to the G20 dinner, parliamentary leader Rahul Gandhi said: “They decided not to invite opposition leaders. This tells us something.” .
“This speaks to the public’s lack of appreciation for their leader, who makes up 60% of India’s population. And that’s what people should be thinking. Why do they feel the need to do so? What is the thinking behind it?” he said when asked about it by reporters in Brussels.
Officials said Banerjee will head to New Delhi on Friday afternoon to attend the G20 dinner, adding that he will also meet with leaders of various political parties while in the capital.
However, the chief ministers of the parliament-controlled states of Karnataka, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan are unlikely to attend. It was not confirmed that Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Bager and Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gerot attended the dinner.
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddharamaiah will also not attend the president’s G20 dinner, according to a person close to him.
President Murum will host a dinner on Saturday at Bharat Mandapam, the venue for the G20 summit.
(Except for the headline, this article is unedited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
