Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s proposed Japan visit to watch the Indian men’s hockey team’s Asian Games semi-final on October 1 has been denied political clearance by the Centre, putting a halt to a trip that the Punjab government had linked to both hockey and preparations for the state’s upcoming international tournament. The proposed visit had assumed added significance for Punjab with eight of India’s 20-strong hockey squad being from the state and an international tournament Punjab is expected to host..
The Asian Hockey Federation had invited Mann and a Punjab government delegation to attend the concluding stages of the Aichi Nagoya Asian Games hockey competition. The clearance from the Delhi Lieutenant Governor came a day after the deadline. The invitation covered the semi-finals on September 30 and October 1 and the finals on October 2 and 3. On September 21, the Punjab government had highlighted the invitation as recognition of the state’s growing role in international hockey. In July 2022, the Centre had refused permission to then Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to visit Singapore for the World Cities Summit. In 2019, he was also refused permission to attend the C40 Climate Summit in Denmark’s Copenhagen.
Government sources said, “At an Asian Games venue, priority is accommodation, security and facilities for athletes. The visit of a Chief Minister needs significant protocol, security and logistical arrangements,” said sources in the government. The Centre had said that the event was meant for mayors and it was unbecoming of a Chief Minister to participate in it. AAP had said the Central government’s intention was to “prevent the Chief Minister from talking about the world-class work done in Delhi” in the international arena.
