US panel opposes visa to Modi

A US government advisory agency has asked the State Department not to reverse its decision to deny a tourist visa to Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi for allegedly abetting human rights violations.

8220;The Commission on International Religious Freedom again urges the State Department to announce Modi8217;s ineligibility for a visa under the Immigration and Nationality Act INA. We have not seen changes that would warrant a policy reversal,8221; said the federal agency8217;s Chairman Felice D Gaer.

Modi was invited last month to attend a Gujarati culture conference in New Jersey, to be held in August. Earlier in 2005, Modi was denied entry into the US to attend the same conference citing his role as the Chief Minister during the 2002 Gujarat riots.