Centre unlikely to clear Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann’s Lahore conference trip | India News
The government on Friday struck a cautious note on an invitation to Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Singh Mann for the International Punjabi Conference in Pakistan, with the external affairs ministry pointing to the severing of all contacts with the neighbouring country after the Pahalgam terror attack.
Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Singh Mann has been invited by Punjabi Parchar, one of the organisers of the event to be held in Lahore during November 27-29, as the chief guest for the opening ceremonyMann has been invited by Punjabi Parchar, one of the organisers of the event to be held in Lahore from November 27 to 29, as the chief guest for the opening ceremony. The conference is aimed at celebrating the Punjabi language, arts, culture, history and cross-border literary and cultural reconciliation.
“When it comes to relations with foreign countries, we have a national policy and expect everybody to abide by it,” external affairs ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal told a regular media briefing when he was asked about the invitation extended to Mann, a leader of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).
Jaiswal said that political clearances for dignitaries travelling abroad were assessed by the external affairs ministry “in line with its overall policy and processed accordingly”.
“As far as our position on Pakistan after the Pahalgam terror attack is concerned, it should be amply clear to all as to where we stand,” he said without elaborating.
Following the Pahalgam terror attack by a front for Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba that killed 26 civilians, India unveiled a package of punitive diplomatic and economic measures, including the suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty of 1960 and the severing of virtually all official contacts between the two sides.
People familiar with the matter said the Punjab chief minister was unlikely to receive political clearance for the visit. The central government has denied clearance to Mann for several planned foreign visits. Mann has said in the state legislature that he wants to attend the conference and visit several historic gurdwaras in Pakistan, including Nankana Sahib and Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur.
Rezaul Hasan Laskar is Foreign Editor with the Hindustan Times, which he joined in 2015. He began as a journalist in his hometown of Shillong in northeast India and has worked in newspapers and wire services over the years. He moved to New Delhi in 1997 and initially focused on defence, national security, Jammu and Kashmir and the northeast, while also working of foreign policy and international relations. He has been part of the media delegation accompanying PMs on foreign visits and has reported from destinations ranging from Tibet to Ukraine. Between 2007 and 2013, he was the Press Trust of India correspondent in Pakistan, one of only two Indian journalists allowed to report from the country. He extensively covered Pakistan’s domestic politics and the life of the common people, as well as the fallout of the 2008 Mumbai attacks on India-Pakistan relations and the subsequent trial in Pakistan of the suspects involved in the attack. As part of his reportage in Pakistan, he travelled the breadth of the country, from the Swat Valley to Balochistan. Reza’s first gig in journalism was writing a weekly music column, and music – especially classic rock – remains a keen interest. He is also a movie buff and a keen photographer.Read More
