New Delhi, Feb 22
Describing US President Donald Trump's standalone visit to India as a landmark moment in the Indo-US ties, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) here on Saturday slammed the Congress for its skepticism and asked why it didn't allow former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to develop the kind of rapport Prime Minister Narendra Modi had with global leaders.
Addressing the media at the party headquarters, BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra said, "Did 10 Janpath allow Manmohan Singh to establish the kind of rapport that Modi has with international leaders?"
He also said Trump had said on several occasions that Prime Minister Modi was a hard bargainer.
Hitting out at the Congress, Patra said why it was upset when the country's stature was being raised globally. Saying that Trump's visit will be a landmark moment in the Indo-US relationships, he advised the Congress to "start taking pride in the nation's achievements".
"It's a meeting of the world's largest and the oldest democracies. It should be celebrated," Patra said.
Slamming the Congress, he said due to Modi's hardwork "India's relations with other countries have further strengthened".
No petty politics: BJP on reports on dropping Kejriwal, Sisodia
Hours after reports suggested that the names of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and his deputy Manish Sisodia were dropped from city government schools events for the US First Lady, the BJP on Saturday said that there should be no "petty politics" on such important occasions.
Addressing a press conference at the party headquarters, BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra told the media: "Petty politics should not be played on important occasions. The government of India represents all Indians and political affiliations should not count on such an occasion.
"There should not be petty politics over that," Patra said responding to a question over the names of Kejriwal and Sisodia being dropped from the US First Lady Melania Trump's visit to Delhi government schools on Tuesday.
According to Delhi government sources, Kejriwal and Sisodia's names have been dropped from the list of dignitaries who will accompany the US First Lady during her February 25 visit to Delhi government schools here.
The development is significant as she will be witnessing the AAP government's flagship happiness curriculum that was introduced by Sisodia two years ago in an attempt to reduce stress among school children. It involves 40 minutes of meditation, relaxing and outdoor activities.
Taking on the Narendra Modi-led BJP government at the Centre, AAP's National Executive member Preeti Sharma Menon in a tweet responded to the media reports. She said: "There is no match for the pettiness of Narendra Modi. You may not invite Arvind Kejriwal, Manish Sisodia, but their work speaks for them."
AAP Minister Gopal Rai during a press conference though said that he has no knowledge of the Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister being dropped from the guest list of Melania Trump's visit to government schools.
"We have not received any official information on the same. And till the time we don't receive any official information regarding the same, we are not in a position to comment on it," Rai said.
According to senior Delhi government sources, the US First Lady is likely to visit schools in south Delhi and see first-hand the impact of the 'happiness curriculum' introduced by Delhi's AAP government in 2018.
Trump is scheduled to visit India on February 24 and 25. The couple will spend the first day of the trip in Gujarat's Ahmedabad and Uttar Pradesh's Agra before moving to Delhi for the official reception and bilateral talks.
This is Donald Trump's first state visit to India and also a first standalone visit by a US President to India.
