india

Updated: Feb 23, 2020 22:21 IST

The US embassy issued a clarification on Sunday over Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and deputy CM Manish Sisodia’s omission from the list of dignitaries invited for US first lady Melania Trump’s Tuesday visit to a Delhi government school to witness a ‘happiness class’ in motion, said news agency ANI.

Embassy’s clarification comes amid a political war over the issue that has pitched the BJP against the opposition parties including the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) which runs the Delhi government, credited with the much publicized and acclaimed educational reforms at the centre of the VVIP visit.

“While US Embassy had no objection to the presence of CM & Deputy CM, we appreciate their recognition that this isn’t a political event & that it’s best to ensure focus is on education, school, & students,” ANI quoted US embassy as saying.

Embassy’s statement is significant in the light of AAP alleging BJP’s hand behind the omissions and the latter claiming innocence saying it didn’t pick the names, which was a prerogative of the American embassy as per the protocol.

Before their names were dropped, it was believed that Kejriwal and Sisodia will welcome Melania Trump at the school and brief her on the curriculum, which was introduced by the Delhi government in all its schools in July 2018 and includes meditation, storytelling, other activities aimed at de-stressing students and question-answer sessions.

But the CM’s office was informed of the change on Saturday morning triggering speculations and blame game.

The BJP hit back at AAP accusing it of “petty politics” on important occasions. It said the government of India represented all Indians and political affiliations should not count on such occasions.

Embassy’s statement could be viewed as unusual by many since the controversy concerns purely concerns domestic politics.