PM Tobgay meets Modi, invites to visit Bhutan
The Prime Minister, Tshering Tobgay, held a bilateral meeting with India’s New Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, at the Hyderabad House in New Delhi on Tuesday morning (27 May).
PM Tobgay on the occasion conveyed felicitations from King Jigme Khesar on his appointment as the Prime Minister of India.
The two leaders reviewed the bilateral relations and expressed satisfaction with the strong ties of friendship and cooperation that exists between the two countries, media reports say. They agreed to build further on the existing ties and to also explore new areas of cooperation in order to take the relations to new heights.
PM Tobgay, customarily, extended an invitation to Modi to visit Bhutan at his earliest convenience to which Modi responded to workout through diplomatic channels.
Tobgay, in his second visit to India, was was accompanied by the Foreign Minister Rinzin Dorje, Major General V. Namgyel, Foreign Secretary Yeshey Dorji and other senior government officials.
India’s new External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, Principal Secretary to the PM Modi Nripendra Misra, Foreign Secretary Sujhata Singh and other senior officials of the Government of India also attended the meeting.
PM Tobgay also paid a courtesy call on the President of India, Pranab Mukherjee at the Rahstrapati Bhavan on Tuesday.
Tobgay had arrived in Delhi on Sunday and was put up at the Leela Palace in Chanakyapuri. Since the PM’s flight arrived late, he remained at the hotel attending only private courtesy calls, Bhutan embassy sources said.
A group of BJP leaders, including BJP MPs Meenakshi Lekhi and Vijay Goel, paid him a visit. He also met Joint Secretary (North) Ministry of External Affairs, President and the Director General of the Confederation of the Indian Industries and members of the Antar-Rashtriya Sahayog Parishad on Sunday.
On Monday, after the oath-taking ceremony, PM Tobgay attended the dinner hosted by President Mukherjee for the foreign dignitaries. Tobgay sitting idle between Modi and Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaj Sharif went viral online. Indian media call it ‘Modi preferred Bhutan PM against Pakistani PM’.