KATHMANDU: Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba abruptly postponed his visit to India on Thursday, citing the absence of high-level political meetings in New Delhi.
Deuba was scheduled to be the keynote speaker at the ‘Kumbh Global Summit on Development and Sustainability’ organized by the Uttar Pradesh government in Prayagraj.
The India Foundation had announced his participation, releasing a banner featuring his photo alongside Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, who was also scheduled to attend the event.
The former Prime Minister was set to depart for New Delhi on Thursday at 3 pm via Air India. However, his plans changed shortly after his wife, Foreign Minister Dr Arju Rana, returned from an official visit to Oman the same day.
Krishna Prasad Poudel, Chief Secretary of the Nepali Congress Central Office, confirmed the postponement, attributing it to the lack of high-level meetings in Delhi.
Sources suggest that Deuba decided to delay his visit after learning that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar would not be available for meetings.
The decision also coincides with the swearing-in ceremony of Delhi’s new Chief Minister, Rekha Gupta, scheduled for Thursday.
Deuba’s visit was seen as an opportunity to strengthen diplomatic ties with India, particularly as he is regarded as a potential future Prime Minister of Nepal.
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