NEW DELHI: The US has apologised to India for an incident involving the frisking of former President APJ Abdul Kalam at the John F Kennedy Airport in New York on September 29. In a written apology to Kalam and the Indian government, the US said appropriate procedures for expedited screening of dignitaries had not been followed.
“The United States government has the utmost respect for former Indian President Abdul Kalam. We deeply regret the inconvenience that resulted for him as a result of a September 29 incident involving the security screening at John F Kennedy airport in New York. We are actively working to prevent similar incidents in the future,” said the US Embassy here.
Kalam was frisked before boarding an Air India flight. After he had taken his seat in the aircraft, US security personnel forced the crew to open the door and took away his jacket and shoes to check for explosives, since they had ‘forgotten’ to do so before his boarding. The items were later returned to Kalam.
Kalam’s office informed the Ministry of External Affairs about the incident after he returned home.
India had strongly objected to the incident. External Affairs Minister SM Krishna had asked Indian ambassador to US, Nirupama Rao, to take up the issue at the highest level. Maintaining it was unacceptable and was being taken very seriously, Krishna asked Rao to tell the US that India may react to it.
Following the protest, the US government ‘deeply’ regretted the incident and conveyed its ‘utmost respect’ for Kalam. In its letter, the US said: “The United States government deeply values and appreciates our strong relationship and partnership with India. We are confident that despite this regrettable incident, we will continue working closely with India in the many areas of our strategic partnership.” On April 21, 2009, Kalam was frisked by the staff of Continental Airlines at Delhi airport. The incident had led to huge uproar in India with the issue being debated in Parliament. The airline and the US government had apologised to Kalam following India’s protest.
Protocol exempts the President and former Presidents from security checks.
