Chennai: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will not be in the city to witness Monday’s gala swearing-in as Chief Minister of AIADMK supremo J. Jayalalithaa, at the Madras University’s Centenary Auditorium at noon. The PM is away on his maiden visit to energy-rich Iran. In his absence, Union parliamentary affairs minister and BJP senior M. Venkaiah Naidu will represent the Centre at the function.
Besides the PM, BJP national chief Amit Shah, Union finance minister Arun Jaitley, Union communication and IT minister Ravi Shankar Prasad and Union minister of state for road transport, highways and shipping Pon Radhakrishnan have been officially invited for the swearing-in ceremony. None from the state BJP has been extended the invitation, sources revealed.
Mr Venkaiah, who during the peak of the election campaign to the Assembly election, had disputed his cabinet colleagues and remarked that Ms Jayalalithaa was “accessible” would represent the Centre at the function. Mr Radhakrishnan said he would also attend the event. Ms Jayalalithaa had invited Mr Modi to the oath-taking function after her impressive victory against DMK in the just concluded Assembly elections. During 2011, her swearing-in at the same venue was attended by Mr. Modi, then as Gujarat Chief Minister.
The 68-year-old leader who will be assuming CM as sixth time, will be administered oath along with her 28 ministers. Her earlier tenures as Chief Minister were 1991-96, 2001-06 and 2011-16.
