New Delhi, 23 July 2013

The headline of the news you will read in newspapers will create a picture like this: 65 members of parliament from 12 different political parties send letter to American President Obama demanding that America should continue to deny visa to Narendra Modi.

As you go deep, the facts emerge: 25 Rajya Sabha MPs had signed a letter demanding not to grant visa to Modi on 26 November last year, 40 Lok Sabha MPs had signed similar letter on 5 December 2012. Both letters were faxed to Obama last year itself. Today they were faxed again to White House, and they were resent by independent Rajya Sabha MP Mohammed Adeeb in view of Rajnath Singh’s ongoing visit to America.

Adeeb claimed that CPI(M) MP Sitaram Yechuri, CPI MP Achuthan are among those who signed the letters. However Yechuri said that he had not signed such letter!

Editor’s note:

Resending the old letters and informing media about this ‘development’ seems just a publicity stunt. And just 60 odd MPs? That’s too low a figure! Then the other thing, how much importance these 65 MPs give to something like visa of some country? What’s so important about getting or not getting American visa? Our Vidhansabha or Parliament is located in Washington? When 65 MPs send and resend letters to White House, it just shows how much importance they give to America!

At first glance it looks like a list of signatures of 65 MPs. But it is actually a list of 64 MPs(first row blank), and even in this list of 64, three names are duplicated. One MP has denied that he signed such document(9th in the list Sitaram Yechuri).

DMK MP AA Jinnah figures at no.11 in RS list and no.6 in LS list.List one entry five is equal to list five entry 24. He is some MP from West Bengal.Then LS MP Sharifuddin Shariq appears both in LS(3) and RS(13) lists.

A church funded NGO sent us a list of “65 MPs”

BJP reacts:

Are these MPs voicing the view of their voters/people of their constituency or their prejudices?! Against our own country man? Shame.

— Nirmala Sitharaman (@nsitharaman) July 23, 2013

The 65 names be revealed, questions asked in their constituencies about their motives. Whose cause are they serving?Modi an elected CM!

— Nirmala Sitharaman (@nsitharaman) July 23, 2013

Pleading to a foreign head of state to settle political scores with an elected CM of ur own country- a new low in Indian politics (1/2)

— Smriti Z Irani (@smritiirani) July 23, 2013

Let these depraved MPs b named publicly, let the people of the Nation decide whether they deserve their vote. (2/2)

— Smriti Z Irani (@smritiirani) July 23, 2013

Swapanda

Some MPs have decided that Indian political battles must be settled by the US umpire. Long live secularist democracy!

— Swapan Dasgupta (@swapan55) July 23, 2013

In this environment would I be lauded for calling for the restoration of the Privy Council's India jurisdiction?

— Swapan Dasgupta (@swapan55) July 23, 2013