The government dismissed reports that it had “snubbed” the visiting Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as he began the second leg of his seven-day visit to India in Gujarat, where he paid homage at Mahatma Gandhi’s Sabarmati Ashram, and visited the Akshardham temple and the Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad (IIMA) for a talk.
Not received by CM
As Mr. Trudeau met with Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, the government brushed aside questions about why Mr. Rupani had not received the Canadian Prime Minister at the airport.
“The CM could not receive him because he was present in the Assembly where the Governor addressed the first day of the budget session,” Chief Secretary J.N. Singh told reporters about the day-long visit.
“Mr. Trudeau was very happy with all arrangements the government made during his brief visit,” he added.
The questions were fuelled after Prime Minister Narendra Modi appeared to side-step Mr. Trudeau’s arrival on Saturday and didn’t issue any statement or tweet to welcome him, as he customarily does with visiting dignitaries, because of tensions over the Trudeau government’s support to separatist Khalistani groups in Canada.
On Sunday, Uttar Pradesh CM Adityanath did not meet Mr. Trudeau when he travelled to Agra.
While Prime Minister Modi had travelled to Gujarat when Chinese President Xi Jinping, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu visited, he didn’t accompany Mr. Trudeau to his home State. He is only expected to meet him on the penultimate day of his visit on February 23, for the official engagements.
MEA sources told The Hindu , however, that there was no “snub” to the Canadian PM, and that the government had “gone by the book” on protocol for Mr. Trudeau. To reports that the lukewarm reception at the tarmac for Mr. Trudeau was due to the government’s reservations over the Khalistan issue, the sources said, “The protocol is that the Prime Minister does not go to the airport to receive dignitaries. There is a departure from this protocol only when the situation merits it.”
Meanwhile, Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari addressed concerns over Sikh extremists living in Canada. “Mr. Trudeau is an honoured guest but the fact is between 1980 and 1995, thousands of innocent people lost their lives in a wave of terror. And some of those responsible for perpetrating terror still find shelter in the country which Mr. Trudeau leads.”
Despite the controversy, Mr. Trudeau and his family enjoyed a packed schedule in Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar. At the Sabarmati Ashram, the Trudeau family paid homage to Mahatma Gandhi, calling him an “inspiration” and describing the Ashram as “a beautiful place for peace, humility and truth.”
Mr. Trudeau will be in Mumbai on Wednesday.
