Latest News | Centre Denies Permission to Punjab Minister Harbhajan Singh to Visit US

Chandigarh, Jul 31 (PTI) The Union government has denied political clearance to Punjab Power Minister Harbhajan Singh for his planned visit to the US, sources said on Thursday.

Singh was to participate in the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) Legislative Summit 2025, scheduled to be held in Boston, Massachusetts, USA from August 4 to 6.

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Political leaders require clearance from the Ministry of External Affairs for travelling abroad.

Singh has not been given political clearance by the Union government for visiting the US, the sources said.

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The invitation to Singh was extended jointly by the NCSL and National Legislators' Conference Bharat (NLC Bharat).

The NCSL Legislative Summit 2025 is one of the largest gatherings of legislative leaders, staff experts and policymakers worldwide, creating an environment filled with unparalleled learning, networking and inspiration opportunities.

The summit would feature open sessions covering various aspects of governance, professional development workshops and networking events designed to facilitate knowledge exchange among legislative colleagues from different countries and jurisdictions, according to an official release issued on July 28.

Last year, the Centre denied political clearance to Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann for his visit to Paris to support the Indian hockey team at the Olympic Games.

Punjab Assembly Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan was also denied political clearance for going to participate in a legislature conference in the US in August last year.

In 2022, minister Aman Arora was also denied political clearance for a knowledge sharing study tour to Europe.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)