Finance Minister Jaswant Singh has declined the invitation of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry to attend its platinum jubilee annual general meeting on December 13.
Senior Ficci officials said Singh had regretted his absence, though Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee would be delivering the inaugural address at the AGM, and Congress President Sonia Gandhi was likely to preside over the luncheon meeting the same day.
This is yet another public function the finance minister has declined to attend. Last week, he did not attend a two-day seminar on corporate governance organised by Ficci along with the Securities Exchange Board of India, where he was expected to deliver the inaugural address.
Just before that, Singh had given a miss to the 18th India Economic Summit, jointly organised by the World Economic Forum and the Confederation of Indian Industry.
His absence from the inaugural as well as the closing sessions of the summit broke a tradition of 18 years.
The minister was also conspicuous by his absence at the Maharaja Hari Singh polo trophy held in New Delhi on December 1.
Though he was scheduled to be the chief guest on the occasion, it was announced during the match that he had got delayed in Indore.
Singh was also expected to attend the international tax conference organised by Ficci on November 13.
When contacted, finance ministry officials said he had been unable to attend the functions on account of his busy schedule.
"Where all can he go," a senior official said. It may be noted that Singh's predecessors like Yashwant Sinha and P Chidambram often made important announcements at such functions.
Singh's absence from business meetings has become a cause of concern for industry. His inability to attend the Ficci AGM has only worsened matters.
