Modi should not apply for a US visa: Jaitley's advice to Modi

New Delhi, Dec 27:

on Friday hit out at the US for denial of visa to

, saying to proclaim the

Chief Minister guilty even when there was no evidence against him despite several probes amounts to "immature diplomacy" and sets a precedent for a "reciprocal" response.

The BJP's attack came a day after a Gujarat court gave clean chit to Narendra Modi in 2002 riots case. Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha, Arun Jaitley, said the American stance on the issue has clearly been one determined by their 'kangaroo court' and asked it to reflect on the "untenable situation".

"The American stance on the issue has clearly been one determined by their 'kangaroo court'... To proclaim Modi guilty even when there was no evidence against him despite investigations and re-investigation amounts to immature diplomacy. "It constitutes interference in India's internal affairs.

Modi has not applied for US visa since 2005 after being denied it once.

This myopic American stance has the potential of recoiling back at them. It also sets a precedent for a reciprocal response. It is time Americans reflect on how they have boxed themselves into this untenable situation," Jaitley said.

"My personal advice to the BJP's prime ministerial candidate has been that he should not apply for a US visa," he said.

Modi has not applied for US visa since 2005 after being denied it once. The extent to which false propaganda led to the subversion of debate on this issue needs to be introspected, he said. "A Chief Justice of India without looking into all facts chose an inappropriate expression 'Nero'. Will he now retract? An editor used the extreme expression 'mass murderer'," he said.

Some countries otherwise friendly to India held their own 'kangaroo court', and decided to proclaim Modi guilty, he said. They ignored the fact that no other Indian politician since Independence had gone through the kind of scrutiny that Modi went through in the 2002 riots case, he said. Meanwhile, the US has said that there has been "no change" in its visa policy on Modi, and he was "welcome" to apply for a visa and wait for a review which will be grounded in American law.

A spokesperson for the Department of State, US, said in Washington yesterday, "There has been no change to our visa policy. Our longstanding policy with regard to the (Gujarat) Chief Minister is that he is welcome to apply for a visa and await a review like any other applicant."

"That review will be grounded in US law. I am not going to speculate about what the outcome might be," he said when asked to comment on the Gujarat court's verdict, which rejected a plea challenging the clean chit given by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) appointed by India's Supreme Court to Modi in the 2002 Gujarat riots case.

Modi was denied a diplomatic visa to the US in 2005. The US also revoked the B-1/B-2 visa issued to him earlier. This decision of the then Bush Administration was done under a section of the Immigration and Nationality Act which makes any foreign government official who was responsible or "directly carried out, at any time, particularly severe violations of religious freedom" ineligible for the visa.

PTI