NEW DELHI: Ahead of Prime Minister Modi’s US visit, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is scheduled to visit that country in the first week of June. The former Congress president is due to address a rally of around 5,000 Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) at Madison Square Garden in New York, sources said. Interestingly, PM Modi too addressed a gathering of Indians at Madison Square Garden in 2014 soon after he became the PM.
The rally will take place on June 4. Gandhi is also likely to visit Washington DC and Los Angeles during his 10-day stay in the US, said sources. During his visit, he is also expected to address the students of Stanford University. The Congress leader will also meet many politicians and business leaders in the US during his visit.
Rahul’s visit comes ahead of PM Modi’s scheduled visit to the US on June 22. Modi’s visit comes on an invitation from US President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden, the government said in a statement. The US President and the First Lady will also host PM Modi for a state dinner. The White House in a statement said that the visit will strengthen the shared commitment between the two countries to a free, open, and secure Indo-Pacific.
Gandhi’s visit to the UK in March this year sparked a political controversy. During his speech at Cambridge University and interaction with journalists, Gandhi remarked that the structures of Indian democracy are under attack and there is a “full-scale assault” on the country’s institutions.
The BJP demanded an apology from Gandhi for defaming the country on foreign soil and the issue led to a war of words between the Opposition and BJP in Parliament too. “Everybody knows, and it’s been in the news a lot, that Indian democracy is under pressure and attack. I am an Opposition leader in India; we are navigating that (Opposition) space,” Rahul said at Cambridge University in the UK.