Sushma leads delegation to Rome to attend ceremony for canonisation of Mother Teresa

02 September, Rome

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj Friday reached Rome as the head of a 12-member delegation to attend the canonisation of Mother Teresa.

The visit will give her an opportunity to meet her counterpart Paolo Gentilioni, the first high-level contact with Italy after the UN tribunal award on the return of Italian marines charged with the murder of two Indian fishermen off Kerala coast in 2012, official sources said.

The delegation comprises Minister for Food Processing Industries Harsimrat Kaur, Lok Sabha MPs Prof KV Thomas, Jose K Mani, Anto Antony and Conrad K Sangma and Deputy Chief Minister of Goa Francis D’ Souza.

Besides SC Judge Kurien Josheph, eminent lawyer Harish Salve, Secretary General of Catholic Bishop Conference of India Theodore Mascarenthas. Secretary(West) in the Ministry of External Affairs Sujata Mehta will also be part of the delegation.

Apart from the Central Government delegation, two state-government-level delegations from Delhi and West Bengal led by their respective Chief Ministers Arvind Kejriwal and Mamata Banerjee have also gone to Rome to attend the ceremony.