President Kovind’s event at Mumbai Raj Bhavan put off

Mumbai: President Ram Nath Kovind, who is on a visit to Maharashtra, was scheduled to inaugurate the Darbar Hall at the Raj Bhavan here on Wednesday, but the event was put off.

Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari himself announced that the event was put off .

Koshyari did not specify any reason for the same.

The announcement, however, came after an Indian Air Force (IAF) helicopter carrying Chief of Defence Staff Gen Bipin Rawat, his wife and several other officers on board met with an accident near Coonoor in Tamil Nadu earlier in the day.

It is the wish of the Honourable President and ours that this programme be put off this opportunity (of inaugurating the hall) will come again in the future, Koshyari said.

Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar accompanied Koshyari on the occasion.

Kovind is on a four-day visit to Maharashtra since December 6.

Meanwhile, taking to Twitter, Koshyari said, I am pained on hearing the sad news about the Force’s helicopter crash in Tamil Nadu. I wish well-being of CDS Bipin Rawat ji, his wife and all the other on-board Force personnel. Gen Rawat was on his way to the Defence Staff College in Wellington when the helicopter accident took place.

There was no immediate information on the condition of Gen Rawat.