Indian Minister misses ‘Little India’ launch event

India’s External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj did not attend the ‘Little India in Bahrain’ project launch as her trip to Bahrain got delayed.

The project was launched on Saturday in the presence of BACA President Shaikha Mai bint Mohammed Al Khalifa, Foreign Minister Shaikh Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa, Indian Ambassador Alok Kumar Sinha, various religious and cultural leaders, businessmen and public. 

“We were informed that her trip was delayed but we could not postpone the event, so we went ahead,” a representative from BACA said. 

Indian Embassy also confirmed to DT News that the visit had been delayed for two to three weeks without giving further details.  The Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that  ‘Arab-Indian Cooperation Forum’, which she was set to attend, was postponed. 

“We would like to inform you that the Arab-Indian Cooperation Forum and the press conference for the Minister of Foreign Affairs with the Minister of External Affairs and Overseas Indian Affairs of the Republic of India that was scheduled to be held on Sunday (December 20) has been postponed to next year,” the ministry stated.

The ‘Little India in Bahrain’ project, organised by the Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities(BACA), in association with the Indian Embassy and Samskrithi Bahrain, saw historical areas in Manama Souq beautified and made to be one of the top attractions in the country for Bahraini and expatriate residents as well as tourists from all over the world.