PM Visit to US Covered in Controversy as American Indians War Over His Welcome

NEW DELHI: Controversy will follow Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the United States with large sections of the Indian origin community getting ready to receive him with a huge welcome at the Madison Square Garden while many others have come together to organise protests in New York and Washington against his visit.

Both sides are busy mobilising support for their ‘welcome’ rallies and the ‘protests’ with invitations, flyers, posters and the social media in full operation as a virtual war rages between the supporters and the opposers.

Several organisations, many of whom were part of the successful campaign to deny PM Modi a US visa, have come together under the Alliance for Justice and Accountability and plan to line the route to the Madison Square Garden with black flag waving demonstrators on September 28. The Alliance has launched a Facebook Page and is actively calling on people to participate in the protests.

The Sikhs for Justice who were the first to announce their decision to protest the PM’s visit to the United Nations General Assembly and later to Washington to meet with US President Barack Obama, have gone a step further by convening what they call a “Citizens Court” to “indict” him in the President Park right in front of the White House.

“The ‘indictment’ proceedings will be conducted in a replica courtroom with the “chargesheet” by the SFJ listing “actions of Modi” during the 2002 Gujarat riots , as per a statement issued by the organisation.

These groups have been very active in mobilising support for their protests with flyers also being distributed saying “Black Flags for visiting PM Modi.” It might be recalled that the protests by these same groups and individuals, then under the banner of Coalition against Genocide, had succeeded in pressurising the US administration at the time to deny him a visa, a ‘ban’ that was kept in force for ten years, in effect till the former Gujarat chief minister won the parliamentary elections this year and became the Prime Minister of India.

At the same time large sections of the Indian origin community are planning a huge reception for the visiting Prime Minister, more so as many of them were denied the occasion in the past because of the visa ban. Many of them have been quoted in the newspaper as welcoming him in warm terms maintaining that they were very excited and very much looking forward to hearing him during his visit.

Rallies ‘America Welcomes Modi’ are being planned by the supporters outside the United Nations Headquarters on September 27 when the Prime Minister is scheduled to address the General Assembly. Huge posters are being printed and Tshirts with Modi logos will be distributed at these meetings.

In Washington too the Indian-Americans plan to hold support rallies outside the white House even as the sikh organisations hold their court to “indict” the Prime Minister. The Indian American Intellectual Forum and the US India Democracy Forum are in the lead, pulling out all the plugs to ensure that the welcome far out reaches the protests.

Meanwhile Facebook and Twitter continue to play host to the controversy raging in the US on the eve of the visit. A Facebook post on the wall of the Alliance for Justice and Accountability reads in what is clearly indicative of the controversy that will divide the Indian-American community during PM Modi’s visit, “On September 28th, 2014 -- the diasporic Indian community will honor toxic Hindutva nationalism.

They will honor public relations driven notions of development, and increased privatization that rely on the disenfranchisement of the poor and the marginalized.

On September 28th, by celebrating Narendra Modi, the Indian American community will disregard the memories of the thousands who were killed, raped and displaced in Gujarat in 2002 and excuse genocidal Islamophobia.

The Alliance for Justice and Accountability stand in protest and condemn the prestige falsely handed to Narendra Modi. Regardless of his political office, we demand that Narendra Modi face a courtroom and a judge for his crimes against humanity!

We cannot stand by and let lies shield Modi anymore!

We cannot join the chorus of the blind and shameless praise that Narendra Modi and the BJP has received!

Come join us as we stand in protest of Narendra Modi's visit and talk in New York City at Madison Square Garden on September 28th!

*** The actual reception for Modi starts at 11am and their doors open at 9:30am. So, we want to make sure to be there early when people are going in to MSG.

Organized by groups and individuals under the banner of Alliance for Justice and Accountability.”