Former prime minister Manmohan Singh. (Photo Credit: PTI file )
New Delhi:
Former prime minister Manmohan Singh will skip the official banquet hosted by President Ram Nath Kovind in honour of US President Donald Trump on Tuesday. Singh had earlier accepted the invite but expressed his inability to attend the same on Monday.
He has conveyed his regret to the President's office for not being able to attend the banquet, sources close to Singh said. The opposition Congress is peeved at the Modi government's move to not allow its top leaders a meeting with the visiting US president, as has been the tradition.
Congress leader in Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury is also skipping the President's banquet in protest over the party's top leaders not being extended an invitation.
A Delhi Police head constable was killed and a deputy commissioner of police injured as clashes over the amended citizenship law broke out again in northeast Delhi's Jaffrabad and Maujpur on Monday, with protesters torching houses, shops and vehicles, and hurling stones at each other.
Violence between groups supporting and opposing the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) was also reported in the Chandbagh and Bhajanpura areas.
This is the second day of clashes in the city where US President Donald Trump will arrive on Monday evening.
Police fired tear gas shells and also resorted lathicharge to disperse the violent crowd of protesters.
Ratan Lal, a head constable attached to the office of the ACP Gokalpuri, was killed. Several police personnel, including Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP), Shahdara, Amit Sharma, were injured while trying to quell the protests.
