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Gujarat CM Modi still on US negative list |
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Although Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi who was denied a visa in 2005 to visit the US, has not applied for it again to attend an international Gujarati conference there, the US State Department has said he continues to be on its negative list and may not be given entry permit again if he applies. The State Department is extremely sensitive to your concerns and we are cognizant of the human rights abuses Modi has committed.” Mathew Reynolds, Assistant Secretary of State for Legislative Affairs, has said in a letter to an activist group. “We have thoroughly searched Department records and located no current non-immigrant visa application. We assure you it will be adjudicated in strict accordance with the Immigration and Naturalization Act.” Reynolds’ reply has been circulated by the CAG, a diverse spectrum of groups and individuals in the US and Canada who have come together in response to the Gujarat 2002 riots to demand justice. In 2005, the US State Department rejected his application for a visa for attending a conference of non-resident Gujaratis. The refusal triggered a controversy with the BJP strongly criticizing the action. The current campaign against Modi gained ground against the backdrop of reports that he was planning to visit the US for attending a three-day World Gujarati Conference. However, the Gujarat Government said he had not applied for a US visa, not did he plan to go to that country. Commenting on Reynolds’ letter, Hyder Khan of the CAG said: “The current response from the State Department has virtually made Narendra Modi persona non grata to the US”.
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