News

Ahead of Putins visit, Rahul says Centre's refusal to let dignitaries meet LoP shows 'insecurity'

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday accused the government of barring visiting foreign dignitaries from meeting the Leader of the Opposition, calling it a sign of insecurity. His remarks came hours before Russian President Vladimir Putins two-day visit to India. Gandhi, who is the LoP in the Lok Sabha, said it has long been a tradition for foreign leaders to meet the opposition leader, but Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Ministry of External Affairs were not following the norm. Normally the tradition is that those who come from abroad have a meeting with the LoP. This used to happen during (Atal Bihari) Vajpayee ji's time, Manmohan Singh ji's time, it has been a tradition but what happens these days is that when foreign dignitaries come and when I go abroad, the government suggests to them to not meet the LoP, Gandhi told reporters in Parliament House complex. This is their policy, they do this every time. They do it when I go abroad and when people come here. We get the message that they have been told that the government has said 'not to meet you', the former Congress president. Highlighting the importance of such meetings, he said the LoP gives another perspective. We also represent India, only the government does not represent India. The government does not want that opposition leaders to meet foreign leaders. This is a tradition (visiting foreign dignitaries meeting LoP), a norm, but Modi ji does not follow this norm, foreign ministry does not follow this norm, Gandhi said without naming Putin. Asked why the government was doing so, he said, It is their insecurity. Putin will arrive here this evening for a summit meeting with Prime Minister Modi. Boosting defence ties, insulating India-Russia trade from external pressure and exploring cooperation in small modular reactors are set to be the focus of the summit meeting between Modi and Putin on Friday that is expected to be closely watched by Western capitals. (With inputs from PTI)