From across the sea

The recent trip of some junior US Congressmen to Gujarat has generated much heat over allegations that the visit was paid for, to build Chief Minister Narendra Modi's positive image - to the extent that the visit of such junior and controversial Republican Congressmen can build an image. The allegations centre around the claim that the Congressmen were given perhaps as much as $16,000 to make an all-expenses-paid trip, supposedly organised by a minor Chicago-based Indian-American libertarian foundation last heard of trying to ensure the re-election of tea party favourite Joe Walsh in a bitter House election that he later lost to Democrat Tammy Duckworth, a disabled veteran whom Walsh had called "no true hero".

With allegations and counter-allegations flying thick and fast, the issue has refused to die down. Oddly, a senior member of the Congress Working Committee, Shakeel Ahmed, seemed to have prior knowledge of the matter, for he told his followers on Twitter, a day before the report on the trip's funding appeared: "Modi says give visa and I will give business, Americans say...give business and we will give you visa. Who is bribing whom is a million-dollar question." Some suggest that this means the accusations the visit was funded by Modi's supporters or public-relations firm, APCO, are less credible. Others point to APCO's ability to drum up support from the US thanks to its deep pockets. Many are particularly amused that, a few days ago, even the veteran American politician, former Speaker and past presidential candidate Newt Gingrich, tweeted that he had had a "Skype call" with Narendra Modi "to talk about economic success of Gujarat". Gingrich has previously expressed no interest whatosever in India.