Will not attend Kejriwal’s swearing-in

Delhi may have to wait longer for full statehood, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi remaining non-committal on granting the status when Chief Minister-designate Arvind Kejriwal and his Aam Aadmi Party colleague Manish Sisodia met him on Thursday.

The two AAP leaders pressed Mr. Modi to grant statehood, saying this was a “golden opportunity” to do so as the Union and the State governments enjoyed a strong majority. Mr. Modi, however, said the BJP did not have adequate numbers in the Rajya Sabha and building consensus on an issue like statehood could take time. The Prime Minister, however, did not reject the demand, saying he would look into the issue.

Mr. Kejriwal and Mr. Sisodia called on Mr. Modi as part of the AAP’s efforts to establish a cordial working relationship with the Union government. Mr. Kejriwal invited Mr. Modi for his swearing-in on Saturday, but Mr. Modi said he would not be able to make it to the function because of a prior engagement. Full statehood has been an election promise of political parties down the years, including the BJP.