While six SAARC nations have confirmed participation in the oath taking ceremony of prime minister-designate Narendra Modi on 26 May, Pakistan has sought time till Friday to react on the matter.
External affairs ministry spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin on Thursday said Nepal prime minister Sushil Koirala, Bhutan prime minister Tshering Tobgay, Afghan president Hamid Karzai, Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapaksa and Maldives president Abdulla Yameen will be are attending the ceremony.
Bangladesh Parliament speaker Dr Shirin Chaudhury will represent prime minister Sheikh Hasina at the function. Akbaruddin said prime minister of Mauritius Navin Ramgoolam will also be present on the occasion. The confirmation from the Pakistan side on whether prime minister Nawaz Sharif attends the ceremony is yet to come, he said.
According to information emanating from Pakistan, though prime minister Nawaz Sharif was personally inclined towards improving trade and cross-border relations he was weighing the pros and cons of attending the swearing-in ceremony. Sharif is believed to be holding consultation with his diplomatic and military corps to evaluate the message of the invitation extended to him.
It is for the first time that heads of foreign countries have been invited to attend the swearing-in ceremony of an Indian prime minister. About three thousand guests are expected to witness the function at the forecourt of Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister-designate Narendra Modi on Thursday left for New Delhi after finally bidding adieu to Gujarat saying, ‘Aavjo (goodbye) Gujarat’. ‘When I am leaving for Delhi, as per our tradition, I would like to say ‘Aavjo’ to 6.25 crore people ... Aavjo Gujarat (goodbye Gujarat),’ Modi said at the airport before leaving for New Delhi. Modi will be sworn in as prime minister on 26 May, after he led his party to a resounding victory in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.