Mumbai: French first lady, Valerie Trierweiler, will fly to Mumbai next week on a two-day visit to fulfil a longstanding humanitarian engagement, despite Hollande's reluctance and advice from the Elysee Palace.
Trierweiler is expected to land in the city on Sunday and will undertakes her first public engagement on Monday.
This is Trierweiler's first public appearance after she was wheeled into a Paris hospital on January 10 in a state of shock following the publication of pictures that showed Hollande on a moped to see his lover, 41-year-old actress Julie Gayet.
With speculation rife over whether she still plays any official role, Miss Trierweiler's entourage announced she would be going on a long-planned trip to Mumbai at the behest of of the Fight Hunger Foundation (ACF), a French relief organisation. In an English language press release, the charity proudly billed Miss Trierweiler as “French First Lady”, but an ACF spokesman described the trip as private. “She supported us before becoming ‘first lady' and has continued to support us since taking up the role,” Valérie-Anne Daher of ACF told BFMTV.
Ms Trierweiler last visited India just under a year ago, in the company of the president, 59, when she saw a shelter for street children in the capital Delhi.
According to the reports in Mumbai, she will be shown around by French actress Charlotte Valandrey, who is involved in the cause of promoting organ donations and transplants.
She will visit a slum and attend a charity gala dinner at a hotel, The Taj Mahal Palace.
