'Mamdani Not an Anti-Social Element': Telangana CM Seeks Explanation Over His US Tour Cancellation

Hyderabad: Telangana chief minister A. Revanth Reddy reacted strongly to his botched United States tour amidst speculation over a proposed meeting with New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, saying, "Mamdani is not an anti-social element. He is an elected Mayor of the New York City."

When asked on his return from London, in the early hours of Monday (August 24), if the US-leg of his foreign tour had been cancelled by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) owing to his proposed meeting with Mamdani, Reddy replied: "The purpose, dates and full schedule of his visit had been shared in advance with the Ministry of External Affairs. The Indian Embassy will know and follow every programme, and would know if such an appointment is fixed."

At a crowed news conference at the secretariat in the evening, Reddy displayed the MEA-approved format in which he had applied for clearance for his two-nation tour. As many as 25 ministers, MPs, MLAs and members of legislative council turned up on the occasion to express solidarity with him.

Reddy drew parallels with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 2015 visit to Pakistan, when Modi spontaneously diverted his flight to Lahore during his return from Afghanistan and met then-Pakistan prime minister Nawaz Sharif. He asked, "Whom did he (Modi) take permission from?"

"While he will meet the prime minister of Pakistan, the chief minister is not allowed to tour the US. Is Pakistan our friendly country?," he added.

He also smiled away as a reporter asked whether the rejection of his US tour was intended to ensure his security, in case he met "anti-social elements."

The MEA had permitted his United Kingdom visit when he left New Delhi in the early hours of August 20, but conveyed rejection of his onward visit to Boston in the US, on August 23 while he was in London, citing a "political angle."

"Prime Minister Narendra Modi should explain the political reasons behind the rejection," he demanded.

Reddy alleges discrimination

Reddy took exception to the Union government clearing his Gujarat counterpart Bhupendra Patel's tour of the US and Canada, which ran concurrently with his own foreign visit.

Patel undertook the tour from August 15 to 24 to promote "Vibrant Gujarat 2047" platform, conducting roadshows, meeting investors and inviting investments into Gujarat. Reddy explained his own visit had been planned for the same purpose under the Telangana Rising 2047 initiative.

"We are also in the same mode to promote education, sports and investments in the state through our own Telangana Rising 2047 and larger Viksit Bharat for the country," he said.

Reddy alleged that the Union government, however, chose to discriminate against Telangana while clearing Patel's tour, as it wanted to overshadow his visit. He said, "It was obvious that the BJP-led central government did not want Telangana to overtake Gujarat in development. The issue also went beyond partisan politics and violated the spirit of federalism. It was an insult to the four crore population of Telangana. We are not going to tolerate the insult. The Congress under the leadership of Rahul Gandhi and president Mallikarjun Kharge will take it up in Parliament."

Reddy added, "The Union government wanted to signal that investments in Telangana would be punished. It did not want any non-BJP State to grow beyond a point. They want only Gujarat and other BJP run States to develop. This is discrimination against Congress-run Telangana. Modi is not acting as the prime minister but as Gujarat chief minister."

Reminding that the Union government's "Viksit Bharat model of development" also included convergence with states, Reddy said he aimed to promote education, sports and investments in Telangana through overseas travels.

He noted that his office had communicated the details of his two-nation tour to the MEA well in advance, as prior planning was necessary for meetings with corporates that might require board approvals before signing memoranda of understanding with the Telangana government for investments.

"But unfortunately, my UK tour was permitted and not the US," he said.

Without any scope for rejection of application on the ground of hidden agenda, Reddy said all details of the visit had been disclosed to the MEA. He said, "Even one-on-one meetings with stakeholders in Telangana Rising were shared. The same format of application when his tours in the past were permitted was used. The MEA examined the proposal but declined clearance for the US from a political angle."

'Attempt to undermine Telangana's development'

Reddy claims that it was "crystal clear" that the Union government wanted to undermine Telangana's development should foreign universities set up campuses in the state.

Telangana aims to bring top ten global universities to the state to make world-class education accessible to middle-class and poor students, who cannot afford going abroad. The scholarships available for overseas studies were insufficient, he noted.

Reddy further urged political leaders across party lines to recognise what he described as the Union government's design against the state. "Unfortunately, the BJP leaders failed to see the injustice to Telangana," he said, "They have obstructed me but not my goal.The global summit of Telangana Rising under 'Invest Telangana Initiative' here on December 7, 8 and 9 here will go ahead unhindered."

Reddy said he had proposed visits to Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Northeastern University and Virginia Tech during his visit to the US.

In the UK, he had gone to Oxford and Cambridge Universities, London School of Economics, London Business School and the University of London.

"They signed agreements to set up off campus centres at the Marri Channa Reddy Human Resource Development Institute here. But, the [Union government] is setting up obstacles for political reasons which we strongly protest," he said.

The Wire is now on WhatsApp. Follow our channel for sharp analysis and opinions on the latest developments.