Kejriwal, Sisodia unlikely to accompany Melania during Delhi school visit

She is scheduled to take part in ‘happiness curriculum’ class during her visit to New Delhi

NEW DELHI: Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and his deputy Manish Sisodia are unlikely to be present when US First Lady Melania Trump visits a Delhi governmentrun school in the national Capital on February 25, according to sources.

As per the original schedule, both Kejriwal and Sisodia were to accompany Melania Trump during her visit to the school, people familiar with the matter said.

Kejriwal and Sisodia were also to brief the US First Lady about the “happiness curriculum” introduced by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government, sources said.

When contacted, a US embassy spokesperson referred the query on the matter to the Delhi government. There was no immediate reaction from the Delhi government.

AAP National Executive Member Preeti Sharma Menon tweeted: “There is no match for the pettiness of @narendramodi You may not invite @Arvindkejriwal @msisodia but their work speaks for them #Trumpindiavisit.’’

Commenting on the issue, Congress leader Shashi Tharoor MP tweeted: “This kind of petty politics in selectively sending invitations for official occasions was introduced by the Modigovt &is unhealthy for our democracy. Exclusion of the Opposition from @Rashtrapatibhvn banquets &Primeministerial receptions may seem trivial, but it undermines India.”

US President Donald Trump will visit India next week. This will be his first visit to the country since taking charge as the President of the US. He will participate in several events in different states of the country during the visit. From Ahmedabad, the delegation will travel to Agra before arriving at the national Capital for the main leg of the visit.