JOIN USThree chief ministers from southern states, including J Jayalalitha of Tamil Nadu, are not attending Monday’s swearing in of Narendra Modi as prime minister, where leaders from Saarc countries would be present.
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and his Kerala counterpart Oommen Chandy are the others not attending the ceremony.
Jayalalitha is upset at the invitation extended to Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa, whom the Dravidian parties hold responsible for alleged war crimes against Lankan Tamils.
Jayalalitha and Modi are known to share personal equation. They have attended each others’ oath-taking ceremonies as chief ministers of their respective states.
Interestingly, the DMDK, led by Vijaykant, backed Modi’s decision to invite Saarc leaders, including Rajapaksa.
“The invitation was extended not only to the Sri Lankan president but to the heads of all eight Saarc countries. All the countries, including Pakistan, are taking part in the ceremony. If President Rajapaksa were the only guest, we would certainly have boycotted it,” he said.
According to the schedule released by the Karnataka Chief Minister’s office for Monday, Siddaramaiah will be attending several programmes in the city.