Hyderabad, Nov 13 (IANS) — Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Friday criticised the Centre over allegedly refusing entry to speakers from abroad who were invited to address the Bharat Summit in Hyderabad, news agency IANS reported. Tharoor, a Congress MP who is one of the speakers at the event, said 115 speakers were refused entry to India or their visas were cancelled, apparently on the instructions of the Ministry of Home Affairs.

Source: IANS via hi INDiA

In a post on X quoted by IANS, Tharoor said: “When I got to Hyderabad, I learned that 115 of the 315 speakers whom the External Affairs Ministry had cleared for the event ended up being refused entry to India or having their visas cancelled, apparently on the instructions of the Ministry of Home Affairs. It is completely unclear under what provision of law the government has taken such a drastic step, but it is obviously impossible to reverse it since the conference concludes tomorrow.” He added: “What a shame that a proud democracy has become so insecure that it must stifle any voices it fears will be critical!” These are Tharoor's allegations; no official order has been made public in the reports checked.

Source: IANS via hi INDiA

115Speakers Tharoor says were denied entry or had visas cancelled
315Speakers cleared by the External Affairs Ministry, per Tharoor
113Delegates The Wire reported barred, citing organisers' sources

A wider claim than the single case reported a day earlier

The claim is a major widening of the case Awaaz Punjab reported on November 12, when Norwegian journalist Helle Lyng Svendsen said India cancelled her visa minutes before she was to leave Oslo for the same summit, despite a granted visa and political clearance. On Thursday, The Wire reported that around 113 of the 315 MEA-cleared speakers had been denied entry, citing sources close to the summit's organisers, and said the visas of some participants were retrospectively revoked by the Union Home Ministry. The Wire put the number who had reached India at around 202 delegates and named Lyng among those denied. The two figures — 113 from organisers' sources and 115 in Tharoor's Friday post — are close but not identical, and neither report carried a government response.

Source: The Wire (via Qoshe)

Tharoor said he attended and addressed the opening day of the Bharat Summit, at which the Congress party is hosting experts from some 70 countries for discussions on the emerging global order, India's strategic response, cooperative federalism and electoral integrity, IANS reported. He said the summit has drawn around 1,000 delegates, including global policymakers, progressive leaders and senior Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge, and will also focus on establishing a think tank called “Our World Institute” and a Global South-Global North platform.

Source: IANS via hi INDiA

What is solid

  • Tharoor posted the 115-of-315 claim on X on Friday, as quoted by IANS
  • The Wire independently reported around 113 barred speakers on Thursday, citing sources close to the organisers
  • Norwegian journalist Helle Lyng's individual visa cancellation for the same summit was reported a day earlier

What is only claimed

  • Whether the refusals and cancellations were made on Home Ministry instructions — Tharoor says 'apparently'; no official order or government response was carried in the IANS or Wire reports checked
What happens next

The summit is under way in Hyderabad and, in Tharoor's words, concludes tomorrow, which he said makes the alleged refusals impossible to reverse. Awaaz Punjab will update this story if the External Affairs or Home Ministry issues an explanation.