US Expresses ”Deep Regret” Over Frisking Ex-India President Abdul Kalam
By KUNA
US authorities have expressed “deep regret” over the incident involving frisking of India’s former President APJ Abdul Kalam on September 29 at the JFK Airport, said an official statement issued by India’s External Affairs Ministry on Sunday.
The US authorities also assured their Indian counterparts that care would be taken to avoid such incidents in the future, it stated further.
“The US Government has promptly written to former President Kalam express its deep regret over the incident and has assured us that it is taking corrective steps to prevent recurrence of such incidents in the future,” said the official statement.
It added: “The two governments are also planning to hold discussions to explore appropriate mechanisms for facilitating airport procedures for dignitaries, in accordance with national regulations.”
Earlier, India had lodged a protest over this incident with the US side, saying it violated a well-laid protocol followed by almost every other country.
Reacting sharply to the incident, the country’s External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna asked the country’s ambassador Nirupama Rao to take up the matter with the US authorities and convey that the issue would be reciprocated by India if Washington doesn’t apologise for the incident.
Krishna had also termed the incident as ‘unacceptable’.
