Narendra Modi may become the first Indian PM to address the US Congress twice

WASHINGTON: US Congressional leaders have invited Prime Minister Narendra Modi to address a joint meeting of lawmakers during his upcoming state visit in June, making him the first Indian leader to receive the rare honor from a foreigner in Washington DC. Provides leaders. However, there is no word yet from New Delhi whether the Prime Minister has accepted the invitation or not.

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell and Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy said, “During your address, you will have the opportunity to share your vision for India’s future and share your vision for the future of our two countries.” There will be an opportunity to talk about the global challenges facing us.” Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries jointly wrote a letter to Modi on Friday.

It is a bipartisan invitation that underscores the bipartisan support enjoyed by US relations with India, going beyond the parties in power or the occupants of 7 Race Course and the White House on both sides.

Prime Minister Modi is coming to the US on June 22 for his first state visit with a state dinner at the invitation of President Joe Biden, the first for an Indian leader after 14 years. The last Prime Minister hosted by former President Barack Obama was Manmohan Singh in 2009.

But Modi will have the only honor for an Indian prime minister to address the US Congress twice. His first speech was in 2016, and that speech is remembered for a formulation he used to describe the difficult journey made by the bilateral relationship: it had “overcome the hesitation of history”.

In 2016, Modi became the sixth Indian prime minister to address the Congress jointly or separately: Jawaharlal Nehru was the first, addressing the House and Senate separately in 1949, Rajiv Gandhi the second in 1985, PV Narasimha Rao in 1994 Atal Bihari Vajpayee became the third in 2000, fourth and Manmohan Singh fifth in 2005.

Modi could now become the sixth and seventh Indian prime ministers to talk to the Congress, and the first to do so twice.

The invitation to Modi was initiated by two members of the House of Representatives—Ro Khanna, a Democrat, and Michael Waltz, a Republican—leading the Indian caucus.

He was the first to indicate that he plans to ask Speaker McCarthy to invite Modi to the India Summit on Capitol Hill in April, so that lawmakers, policy experts and Indian American community leaders can discuss the importance of India-US relations. Can be invited to talk about the future.

He wrote to Speaker McCarthy last week requesting an invitation to Prime Minister Modi, and four congressional leaders representing both the Democratic and Republican parties took it up.