Revanth’s US trip row: Meetings with Vance, Mamdani not routed

Chief ministers, political leaders and dignitaries should submit their proposed itinerary, including reasons and purpose for their visits, to the Minister of External Affairs for political clearance.

Hyderabad/New Delhi: The row between the Centre and Telangana Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) over denial of travel to the United States has intensified after reports suggest CM Revanth was scheduled to meet Vice President JD Vance and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdanik, not listed through the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).

Sources told NDTV that the proposed meetings were allegedly not part of the programme submitted to the MEA as part of the political clearances process. They maintained that the denial was strictly on technical grounds and not political.

The CMO had sought political clearance for Revanth Reddy’s visit to the United States and the United Kingdom. Clearance was granted for the UK but denied for the US leg.

It is mandatory for chief ministers, political leaders and dignitaries to submit their proposed itinerary, including reasons and purpose for their visits, to the Minister of External Affairs for political clearance. The ministry reviews it before approving.

Revanth returned to Hyderabad on August 30.

In a press release, the Telangana CMO stated the chief minister’s purpose for the US visit was to learn about the finest education in the US and bring it to Telangana and Hyderabad.

“The only purpose of the visit was to, as part of the New Education Policy of the Centre, bring the world’s best institutions to India, to Telangana, and to Hyderabad. They would have been an answer to our youth’s aspirations to get education, skills, and training from the best Ivy League and top global institutions,” the release said.

The proposed meeting with Mamdani was seen as significant given his political profile, while a meeting with Vance would have been a high-level engagement. However, sources said neither meeting was discussed with the MEA and that the Telangana CMO communicated with the respective US officials directly.