Former President Pranab Mukherkee was the centre of attention at Congress president Rahul Gandhi’s iftar party on Wednesday evening that had several leaders in attendance in a show of Opposition unity.
There was a sense of disquiet in the Congress after Mr. Mukherjee went ahead with his visit to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) headquarters in Nagpur last Thursday.
Many TV channels had reported that the Congress had not sent an invite to the former President and the Congress had to issue a denial. Though Opposition heavyweights like Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, NCP chief Sharad Pawar or BSP supremo Mayawati were not present, they had sent their representatives. None from the Samajwadi Party (SP) could be seen at the event.
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At Mr. Gandhi’s table, both Mr. Mukherjee and the Congress chief were seen engrossed in a discussion. Others who shared space included former President Pratibha Patil, former Vice-President Hamid Ansari, CPI(M) leader Sitaram Yechury, Satish Mishra from the Bahujan Samaj Party, Trinamool’s Dinesh Trivedi and DMK’s Kanimozhi.
“Good food, friendly faces and great conversation make for a memorable Iftar! We were honoured to have two former Presidents, Pranab Da & Smt Pratibha Patil ji join us, along with leaders from different political parties, the media, diplomats and many old & new friends,” tweeted Mr. Gandhi after the party.
At the Congress chief’s table, guests were heard exchanging comments in a lighter vein about Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s fitness video that was released on the PM’s twitter handle.
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The Congress chief received Mr. Mukherjee when he arrived at the venue and later the former President was seen exchanging greetings with other guests.
Mr. Gandhi too moved from table to table to greet guests that included diplomats including the Russian Ambassador to India Nikolay Kudashev.
Mr Gandhi’s mother and the former Congress chief, Sonia Gandhi, was not present as she had gone out of the country for her annual medical check up.