US ends Modi’s boycott as envoy holds talks

Narendra Modi shakes hands with Nancy Powell as they meet in Gandhinagar, Gujarat, on Thursday. — AFP

American ambassador to India Nancy Powell met Narendra Modi at his residence in Gandhinagar near here on Thursday, indicating that the US had ended its nine-year-old boycott of the controversial Gujarat chief minister.

Powell, who was with the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) prime ministerial candidate for 70 minutes, was accompanied by US consul-general in Mumbai Peter Hass and other senior officials of the US embassy all of whom were welcomed by Modi with flowers and handshakes.

BJP sources told Khaleej Times that Powell praised the ‘good governance’ and ‘swift development’ in Gujarat since her last visit 20 years ago and that the meeting marked a change in stance of the US which had been denying Modi a visa since 2005 over his alleged role the 2002 communal riots.

But the US state department was quick to say that Powell’s visit was only part of the US mission’s efforts to reach out to senior leaders of India’s major political parties.

The US embassy in New Delhi said in a statement that the meeting “was part of the US mission’s outreach to senior leaders of India’s major political parties in advance of the upcoming national elections”, adding that the discussions focussed on the importance of the US-India relationship, regional security issues, human rights, and American trade and investment in India.

The statement also said that the US looked forward to working closely with the government chosen by the Indians in the Lok Sabha polls, hinting that the US had no reservations in doing business with Modi if he became India’s next prime minister.

Thursday’s was the biggest US engagement with Modi in years, but business delegations from the country had always been welcomed by the Gujarat administration and they participated in events such as the ‘Vibrant Gujarat’ summit.

Despite the visa ban, Modi has also reached out to the Indian diaspora in the US through video-conferences. Modi is accused by rights groups of turning a blind eye to riots that killed up to 2,000 people in Guarajat in 2002.

Modi has denied any wrongdoing over the 2002 violence and investigations have cleared him of personal blame, although one of his former ministers was jailed for life for instigating the killing of 97 people.

Powell’s meeting with Modi brings the US in line with European nations and Australia, which have already restored ties with him, as opinion polls show Modi on course to win power at general elections in May.

If elected prime minister, Modi would be highly unlikely to experience hassles with travel to the US, which generally allows visits by leaders of friendly countries.

A US congressional aide said this week that a meeting with Powell would signal Washington’s willingness to issue a visa to Modi if he were to apply.

The Powell-Modi meeting had been facilitated by the federal external affairs ministry, which had received a request to arrange for the meeting some time ago.

Powell also had a 40-minute meeting with the leader of the oposition in the Gujarat legislative assembly and senior Congress party leader Shankarsinh Vaghela.

Vaghela later told journalists that he told her about the ‘violation of human rights in Gujarat and the state government’s involvement in the fake encounters’.

Powell, who arrived in Ahmedabad on a two-day visit on Wednesday night, visited Sabarmati Ashram in the morning and in the evening she went round the Sardar Patel memorial, heritage monuments like Sidi Saiyedni Mosque, and the stepwell of Adalaj.

Powell will meet the Congress opposition leader in the state parliament, non-governmental groups and US and Indian businesses while in Gujarat, the US embassy said in its statement which also emphasised that both sides were seeking “a strategic partnership that is broad and deep”.

— mahesh@khaleejtimes.com