CM cancels promising business visit

Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh has cancelled his Singapore stay mid-way following protests by Dalits against the desecration of Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar's statue in Kanpur.

The chief minister had left for Singapore on a three-day tour on Wednesday night after camping in Delhi for four days to attend the India Economic Forum.

During his stay, the state government signed an MoU with German auto major Volkswagen for a $500 million investment in the state.

A senior official from the chief minister's office said Deshmukh was expected to be back by Friday morning. "He is trying to board the first available flight to Mumbai," he said.

Deshmukh had gone to Singapore to participate in the road show organised by the Maharashtra Airport Development Corporation for its Multi-nodal International Cargo Hub and Airport project at Nagpur (MIHAN).

The road show was organised to find a suitable partner to carry out the project and attract investments worth Rs 3,000 crore. Besides this, Deshmukh was also expected to meet many business leaders from Singapore.