President Pranab Mukherjee greets Finance Minister Arun Jaitley at an Iftar party hosted by him at Rashtrapati Bhawan in New Delhi yesterday.
IANS/New Delhi
President Pranab Mukherjee yesterday hosted an Iftar party that saw leaders from several political parties in attendance at Rashtrapati Bhavan here, but Prime Minister Narendra Modi was conspicuous by his absence.
Modi had a pre-scheduled meeting with chief ministers of the northeastern states at 7pm and did not attend the Iftar.
However, Home Minister Rajnath Singh and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley were present.
Others who attended the Iftar included Vice President Hamid Ansari, Congress president Sonia Gandhi, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mufti Mohamed Sayeed, Delhi Lt Governor Najeeb Jung and Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.
Janata Dal-United chief Sharad Yadav, Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar, Trinamool Congress leader Derek O’Brien and several diplomats were among the attendees.
In his message, the president said Ramadan was a month of blessings and forgiveness which reminds people of their duty towards the poor and less privileged as well as the need for charity and generosity towards all.
