By IANS
New Delhi : The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has alleged that External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee was given a shabby treatment in his recent visit to Russia and demanded an explanation from the government.
BJP spokesman Prakash Javadekar referred to a media report saying that Mukherjee was frisked at Moscow airport during his visit last week and that his Russian counterpart did not meet him while he was in the Russian capital.
“The UPA (United Progressive Alliance) government must come clean on the embarrassment faced by External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee on his inter-governmental commission visit to Russia.
“Reports about the Russian foreign minister not meeting Mukherjee and his frisking at the airport do not gel well for the country. The country must know whether this is displeasure by the host country or bad handling of the visit by our government,” Javadekar said.
“Russia has been our trusted ally through thick and thin. The embarrassment faced by MEA (ministry of external affairs) is a cause of concern because of this special relationship. A curious aspect of the visit needs explanation as to whether it was not properly planned or planned in haste to postpone domestic crisis with Left,” he added.