Pakistani singer Ghulam Ali to perform in Delhi, accepts Mamata Banerjee's invitation also

Accepting the invitation extended by Delhi's ruling Aam Aadmi Party, Pakistani ghazal singer Ustad Ghulam Ali has agreed to perform in the national capital in December this year.

He has also accepted West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's invite to perform in Kolkata.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal spoke with Ghulam Ali and announced on Twitter that the ghazal maestro will perform in the nation capital this December, IANS reported.

"Ghulam Ali Sahib. Hum apke bahut bade fan hain (I'm a huge fan of yours). Abhi apse baat karke bahut acha laga (I felt really good to talk to you). Thanks for agreeing to do a program in Delhi in December," Kejriwal said in his tweet on Friday morning.

Delhi Tourism Minister Kapil Mishra had on Thursday extended invitation to the acclaimed ghazal singer through Twitter. "Sad that Ghulam Ali is not being allowed in Mumbai. I invite him to come to Delhi and do the concert. Music has no boundaries," he had tweeted.

Hours after AAP invited Ghulam Ali, Mamata Banerjee also extended an invitation through Twitter. "Music has no boundaries. Music is the rhythm of the heart. Ghulam Ali Ji concert can be held in Kolkata. We will make all arrangements," she said in her tweet on Thursday.

Later, Trinamool Congress leader Derek O'Brien said that Ghulam Ali has accepted Banerjee's invitation and will perform sometime in future.

"Ghulam Ali Ji thanked Mamata Banerjee for her invitation and said he was deeply touched. He looks forward to performing in Kolkata sometime in the future as the people of Bengal love their music," O'Brien said.

Both the invitations were sent after his concerts in Mumbai and Pune were cancelled following threats from the Shiv Sena, which is in power in Maharashtra along with the BJP. The party had threatened to disrupt the concert.  

The 75-year-old Pakistani singer was scheduled to perform in Mumbai and Pune on 9 and 10 October, respectively, in memory of the late Indian ghazal singer Jagjit Singh. The organisers, however, cancelled the concert on Wednesday night after meeting Sena president Uddhav Thackeray.