Norwegian Journalist Says She Was Stopped From Travelling to India

Norwegian journalist Helle Lyng Svendsen said she was stopped from travelling to Hyderabad shortly before departure, despite holding an Indian visa and political clearance for the Bharat Summit. She said the Indian Embassy in Norway called about 10 minutes before she planned to leave for the airport and told her she could not go to India.

Lyng, who works for the Norwegian newspaper Dagsavisen, said she had been invited to speak about media, press freedom and democracy. The Congress-organised summit is scheduled for November 13 and 14 in Hyderabad. Lyng was listed to speak on November 14, and said in a video message that her session was about 48 hours away, leaving time for her to travel if permitted.

She attributed the decision to the Ministry of Home Affairs, saying she had been told that although her visa had been issued, she would not be allowed to enter India. Lyng described the visa as cancelled, but the precise action affecting her travel authorization has not been independently established. The Ministry of Home Affairs, the Ministry of External Affairs and the embassy had not commented in the reports; one said responses from the ministries were awaited, while another said...