Lagatar24 Desk
New Delhi, July 21: Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena has rejected the proposal regarding Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s trip to Singapore to attend the ‘Eighth World Cities Summit and WCS Mayors Forum’ and has advised him not to go to a conference that is ostensibly a gathering of mayors and not appropriate for a Chief Minister to attend.
The LG has noted that the conference will cover various aspects of urban governance, which in the case of Delhi are addressed by various civic bodies including the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC), Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), and Delhi Development Authority (DDA) in addition to the Delhi government. The LG has carefully examined the nature of the forum, the profile of other attendees, as well as the topics being discussed at the Conference.
According to sources, the LG has emphasised that the GNCTD does not have sole authority over the problems related to the conference’s theme, making a Chief Minister’s attendance unsuitable.
In a letter sent to Prime Minister Narendra Modi earlier on Sunday, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal requested permission to travel to Singapore for the World Cities Summit.
An argument broke out between the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)-run Delhi government and the Center over Kejriwal’s planned trip to Singapore to attend the international conference there.
Notably, the World Cities Summit provides leaders and business professionals with a forum to discuss the difficulties in creating livable, sustainable cities and to consider integrated urban solutions. This year’s summit will take place from July 31 to August 3.
