Modi not to attend Kejriwal’s swearing-in ceremony

As part of his ongoing effort to build a working relationship between the Delhi Government and the Centre, Aam Aadmi Party leader and Delhi Chief Minister-designate Arvind Kejriwal called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday morning along with Manish Sisodia who is tipped to be Deputy Chief Minister.

Mr. Sisodia later told reporters was that Mr. Modi would not be attending the swearing-in ceremony of the Delhi Chief Minister on Saturday. Also, he said, Mr. Modi assured them that he would look into the demand for Delhi statehood.

Mr.Kejriwal had reached out to senior Union Ministers Venkaiah Naidu and Rajnath Singh for support in fulfilling some of its major poll promises on Wednesday.Among the issues under discussion were the granting of full statehood to Delhi and the regularisation of unauthorised colonies in the city both of which fall under the domain of the Central government.

“I assured him that the Centre is willing to cooperate with the State and contribute to the overall interest of people and development but the cooperation will depend on your operation. If you perform well, we will extend all our support,” Mr. Naidu had said.

The Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP on Tuesday swept to power with 67 seats in the 70-member Delhi Assembly, leaving only three to the Bharatiya Janata Party and nil to the Congress.