With mere days left before President Donald Trump lands in India, there have been several controversies and confusing statements made by officials. From being uncertain about the expected turnout for the event to contradictions regarding the exact itinerary for the event -- there are several instances.
More recently, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Thursday said that the 'Namaste Trump' event is being organised by the Donald Trump Nagrik Abhinandan Samiti.
"The Samiti is taking all decisions on whom to invite," MEA spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said. He added that the visit will be brief, spanning 36 hours and will be "very intense".
His comments however raised more questions that it answered.
For one, the Donald Trump Nagrik Abhinandan Samiti (DTNAS) does not seem to have an online presence or at least nothing that a quick Google search throws up. Nor do they seem to have an address or any social media handles.
Secondly, with the event being organised by the DTNAS, this would mean that the associated road show too would fall under the purview of the organisation. Thus, the Ahmedabad Municipal Commissioner's statements regarding the registered participants numbering over a lakh too becomes confusing, in the sense that it is no longer the only authority handling the details at the ground level.
Additionally, it continues to remain unclear as to who exactly has been invited to the event, and whether opposition leaders will be in attendance.
Soon after the MEA's comments, the Congress took to Twitter to criticise the Prime Minister.
"Dear PM, who is the President of Donald Trump Abhinandan Samiti?," asked party spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala on Twitter.
He also asked why the Gujarat Government was "spending Rs. 120 crore for a 3 hour event organised by an unknown private entity".
India values its visiting dignitaries but please note - Diplomacy is serious government business and not a series of photo-ops and event management tactics," the Congress leader said."
According a recent Reuters report, sources said that the Ahmedabad authorities expect to spend Rs. 800 million to Rs. 850 million on preparations for the visit that will last about three hours.
(With inputs from agencies)
