US security agencies extra cautious about protests during PM Modi's visit

Security agencies in the US are adopting heightened measures while considering approvals for protest groups during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s state visit to the country, intelligence sources told News18.

These sources further emphasized that the agencies are exercising extra caution due to the incident that happened in March this year when pro-Khalistani groups held protests against the police actions taken against radical preacher Amritpal Singh in Punjab.

“They understand it’s not only about protests, but physical attacks are also involved. US authorities also understand that protests may lead to physical violence and people are not sympathetic about them,” News18 quoted a source as saying.

The attack on the Indian Consulate in San Francisco, carried out by those groups, has prompted the security agencies to be particularly vigilant.

U.S. rights groups are planning protests against Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s state visit to Washington over what they call India’s deteriorating human rights record, even though experts do not expect Washington to be publicly critical of New Delhi, Reuters reported.

The Indian American Muslim Council, Peace Action, Veterans for Peace and Bethesda African Cemetery Coalition plan to gather near the White House on June 22 when Modi is due to meet President Joe Biden, it said.

Another event is planned in New York featuring a show titled “Howdy Democracy,” a play on the name of the 2019 “Howdy Modi!” rally in Texas featuring the Prime Minister and then-US President Donald Trump, the Reuters report added.

Modi departed for the US on Tuesday morning on a State Visit at the invitation of President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister on Tuesday said ties between India and the US are stronger and deeper than ever, and asserted that there is an “unprecedented trust” between the leaders of the two countries.

In an interview with The Wall Street Journal before his first state visit to the United States, Modi stated, “India deserves a much higher, deeper, and wider profile and role.”

Modi’s US visit is expected to give India access to critical American technologies Washington rarely shares with non-allies, strengthening a new bond that is underpinned by not just global politics but also business and economics.

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