In a response to Mamata Banerjee’s accusations that the central government has blocked her visit to Chicago for the World Hindu Foundation, the foreign ministry claimed that it had not received any such request in the first place. “Never received a request for her approval,” said an official from the ministry
The Trinamool Congress Party (TMC) had alleged that Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) wanted only one programme to be held on the occasion of 125 years completion of the historic address by Swami Vivekananda, in which the West Bengal Chief Minister was invited.
TMC also accused the saffron party and its ally on mounting up “pressure” on the organisers to cancel an event in Chicago.
Senior TMC leader Derek O’Brien said in a statement that the Vivekananda Vedanta Society had invited Mamata Banerjee and she had confirmed her participation. But under ‘tremendous pressure’, the organisers were forced to cancel the program.
“It is common knowledge that the BJP-RSS wanted only one major programme to be held in Chicago and that would be under the banner of the Global Hindu Congress (World Hindu Foundation) and this programme would be attended by Mohan Bhagwat…To ensure this happened, intense pressure was mounted on Vivekananda Vedanta Mission in Chicago to cancel the programme,” he said in the statement.
Meanwhile, the External Affairs spokesperson Raveesh Kumar has said on Wednesday, that the government has not received any request from Mamata Banerjee for any clearance. He called all the allegations made by Banerjee and her party as false and directionless.
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