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Updated: Oct 25, 2019 20:54 IST

US President Donald Trump, who lit a diya in the Oval Office to mark Diwali ahead of the festival over the weekend, has greeted people who observe the Festival of Lights a blessed and happy celebration.

“For many Hindus, Jains, Sikhs, and Buddhists in the United States and around the globe, this sacred period is an opportunity to commemorate the victory of light over darkness, good over evil, and knowledge over ignorance,” Trump said according to a White House statement.

Throughout this holy time, members of these faiths engage in prayer, light diyas and lanterns, and partake in traditional feasts and other festivities with friends and family, he said.

The US President said the observance of Diwali throughout America was an important reminder of the significance of one of the country’s core tenets — religious liberty.

“My Administration will continue to defend the rights enshrined in our Constitution that enable people of all faiths to worship according to their beliefs and conscience,” he said.

There were reports earlier in the US media that Trump had marked the festival with the ceremonial lighting of a diya at the White House. This year’s White House ceremony was, however, reported to have been closed to reporters and cameras.

This was Trump’s third Diwali celebrations at the White House, a tradition that began with his predecessor Barack Obama in 2009.

Trump’s first Diwali celebrations at the White House was in his Oval Office in 2017 in the presence of a select group of Indian-American community leaders and members of his administration.

Last year, Trump invited the then Indian Ambassador to the US, Navtej Singh Sarna, for Diwali celebrations in the Roosevelt room.