A key member of the Congress party, Manmohan Singh has been facing health issues for some time.
Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh did not attend the meeting of the party's top decision-making body, the Congress Working Committee, that has been called today to discuss the party's debacle and drubbing in the just-concluded assembly elections, sources told NDTV.
Dr Singh, 89, did not attend the meeting owing to ill health, they added.
Other than Dr Singh, former Defence Minister AK Antony and three senior leaders were absent in the party's top body meet. Mr Antony skipped the meet after testing positive for Covid. "He is extremely disappointed to not being able to attend today's CWC meeting," tweeted his son, Anil K Antony.
Overall, 57 top Congress leaders have been invited for the meeting which is scheduled to take place at 4 pm.
Dr Singh was seen missing in the party's strategy meeting at Sonia Gandhi's home this morning. The meeting by Congress Parliamentary Strategy Group was called to discuss the strategy for the Budget Session of the Parliament, which resumes tomorrow.
The meet, held at Sonia Gandhi's house, was attended by Congress leaders Mallikarjun Kharge, Anand Sharma, K Suresh and Jairam Ramesh.
A key member of the Congress party, Manmohan Singh has been facing health issues for some time. He was admitted to the All India Institute of Medical Science (AIIMS), Delhi last year in the cardio neuro section of the institute for heart ailment.
Dr Singh has already undergone several cardiac bypass surgeries in past. The latest surgery was conducted on him in January 2009.
Dr Singh, a Rajya Sabha member, leads an active public life. In April 2020, he was appointed as the chief of an internal 11 member committee to formalize the Congress party's stand on key national issues particularly in the backdrop of the spread of coronavirus pandemic by party president Sonia Gandhi.