Amid the fresh allegations and controversy in which it was said that a US congressional delegation's visit to Gujarat on official sanction, the US has said that there is no immediate change in its stand on a visa to Chief Minister Narendra Modi. However it has said that Modi is "welcome to apply".
According to State Department spokesperson Victoria Nuland, "Visits like this do help support a deepening of business-to-business ties, of people-to-people ties, across India, in Gujarat."
"So from our perspective, the more congressional delegations that visit India and understand its dynamism and diversity, the more likely we are to continue to deepen those important ties," she said.
However she made it clear that this did not foretell a change in its policy towards Modi, who has been denied a US visa for his alleged role in the 2002 Gujrat riots.
She further added, "With regard to Mr. Modi, our lines have not changed here. He is welcome to apply, but all visa decisions are made on a case by case basis, and I'm not going to prejudge it here."
The US ambassador to India Nancy J. Powell met the congressional delegation led by Republican member of the House Aaron Schock, Nuland said. But she was not sure if the envoy accompanied the delegation that met Modi March 28 and invited him to visit the US.
"I don't know if our Ambassador accompanied them to Gujarat. She obviously sees all congressional delegations which come through Delhi," the spokesperson said. She also didn't believe that Powell had met Modi.
Asked if the Congressional delegation had met Secretary of State John Kerry before going to India or would brief him on their return, Nuland said "I expect they had a good discussion" with Powell, who would convey the results of their trip back to Washington.
(With inputs from IANS)
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