From Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to Bhutan Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay, and from Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Congress president Sonia Gandhi, many VVIPs are expected to figure in the list of probable invitees to Mamata Banerjee’s swearing-in ceremony at Red Road here on May 27.
The other names likely to figure in the list of invitees include Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar, RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav, external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj, railway minister Suresh Prabhu, home minister Rajnath Singh, finance minister Arun Jaitley, Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, Uttar Pradesh chief minister Akhilesh Yadav, thespian Amitabh Bachchan and Bengal brand ambassador Shah Rukh Khan.
The names of the invitees have not yet been officially announced. However, a top party leader said Ms Banerjee will be sending invitation cards to all those leaders and celebrities who either called her up to congratulate her or sent text messages. “Prime Minister Modi was among the first leaders to congratulate Didi on her return to power,” he added.
When Ms Banerjee was asked about the details of the swearing-in ceremony, the chief minister-designate said, “I have dedicated this victory to the people of Bengal. Therefore, I have decided to have the ceremony on Red Road in the midst of the people.”
Elaborating on the unusual venue, she said if it is held at Raj Bhavan, only 3,000 people can attend it. “Even Netaji Indoor Stadium will not do because it can accommodate a maximum of 12,000 people. Nearly 30,000 people can attend the ceremony if it is held on the sprawling Red Road,” she said, adding she wanted a large attendance because the TMC is a people’s party.
In 2011, Ms Banerjee was sworn in at Raj Bhavan from where she had walked down to the Writers’ Buildings. Thousands of common people had joined her in the historic walk to the corridors of power. Answering a question, Ms Banerjee ruled out the possibility of walking from Red Road to Nabanna on May 27. “In 2011 we had come to power for the first time,” she explained.
