No request from Assange for asylum: India
New Delhi, June 14: WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has never requested for asylum in India, government said on June 13, rebutting his claim that he had written to External Affairs Ministry through the Indian high commissioner in London.
"We
have
checked
our
records
and
we
cannot
find
any
reference
to
Julian
Assange
seeking
asylum.
I
don't
know,
whether
he
did
it
through
social
media
or
what?
Certainly
he
has
not
made
any
request
that
we
are
aware
of,"
top
government
sources
said
here.
Assange, holed up in the Ecuadorian embassy in London since June 19 last year, was quoted as saying in an interview in a newspaper that India was among the first countries he had approached for asylum but he never heard back.
"I was disappointed and saddened that India, known for upholding human rights, never got back despite several requests by me for asylum. Indians are also great supporters of WikiLeaks. I therefore contacted the foreign office through the Indian high commissioner. I wrote to them but they never responded," Assange was quoted as saying by the paper.
PTI