Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to address a joint session of the United States Congress during his state visit to the country in early June. He is scheduled to visit the U.S. for a bilateral meeting; the itinerary, though, is not yet confirmed with President Barack Obama, according to a newspaper report.
Two U.S. House of Representatives' Foreign Affairs Committee leaders have written to House Speaker Paul Ryan on Tuesday seeking to extend an invitation to Modi to address the Senate and the House in Washington during his visit. Last time this invitation was extended when Rajiv Gandhi was Prime Minister.
"Given the depth of our relationship with India across a range of areas - defence, humanitarian and disaster relief, space cooperation, conservation, and innovation - we believe this is an ideal opportunity for the Congress to hear directly from the prime minister," Reuters quoted Republican Ed Royce and Democrat Eliot Engel as saying.
Republican Representative George Holding and Democrat Ami Bera also signed the letter sent to Ryan. "We hope Prime Minister Modi will accept our invitation to address a joint session of Congress. During his earlier visits, the schedules could not match. This time, it looks possible," Holding told the Hindu.
Modi was in 2005 denied a visa by the then government led by George W Bush over the 2002 Gujarat riots, in which over 1,000 people were killed. He was then the Chief Minister of the state. However, all restrictions were lifted after he became the prime minister in 2014.