India Has To Behave Like A Democracy

As the spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs has pointed out, the government has the sovereign right to deny entry to any foreign national. True, even a visa does not confer an unconditional right to enter a country. But the exercise of a right does not automatically make its exercise right. The distinction is particularly important when the government claims to uphold democratic values and freedom of expression. The Telangana government, in association with the Indian National Congress, organised the Bharat Summit 2026 in Hyderabad on November 13 and 14. It was projected as an international platform to discuss democracy, development and the challenges confronting democratic societies. Delegates from more than 70 countries were invited, and their participation was announced after invitations had been extended and visas obtained. It was, therefore, reasonable for those invited to believe that they were welcome in India. But that expectation was belied when the Union Home Ministry reportedly intervened to prevent a large number of foreign participants from attending the conference.

The most disturbing case was that of Helle Lyng Svendsen, a young Norwegian journalist who was preparing to make her first visit to India. She was reportedly informed that she could not travel to the country despite having obtained the necessary visa. Her alleged offence was that she had questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi about his reluctance to take questions beyond those permitted at a media interaction. Asking questions is an elementary responsibility of a journalist, not an act of hostility towards a country. A government that takes offence at an uncomfortable question from a foreign journalist betrays an intolerance that sits uneasily with democratic principles. Though Shashi Tharoor tweeted that as many as 115 of the 315 pre-cleared international speakers were prevented from participating or had their visas revoked, Rahul Gandhi has quoted the figure as 150. The government and the BJP may have had reservations about some participants, their affiliations or the political orientation of the conference. Such reservations could have been expressed and debated openly. But denying entry to people who had been invited to participate in a conference is hardly an appropriate response.

India is the world’s largest democracy and has every reason to be confident about its democratic credentials. It need not fear criticism or shield those in power from uncomfortable questions. Nor would the heavens have fallen had the invited delegates been allowed to enter the country and participate in the conference. Differences over their views or affiliations could have been addressed through open discussion rather than exclusion. The government may insist that its decision was within its sovereign powers, but legality and propriety are not always synonymous. By preventing invited participants from visiting India, the country has missed an opportunity to demonstrate the openness it often proclaims.