Kerala Sports Minister gets clearance for Beijing trip

Fri, Aug 8 10:29 PM

Thiruvananthapuram, Aug 8 (PTI) After initially excluding Kerala Sports Minister from the Indian delegation for the Beijing Olympics, the Centre has given him the nod to proceed following the intervention of the state Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan. The Sports Minister M Vijayakumar's office received a communication clearing his trip from Prime Minister's Office (PMO) this evening, official sources said.

The LDF government had expressed resentment after Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) refused to include the minister in the Indian delegation visiting Beijing in connection with the Olympics, alleging that it was done 'on political grounds'. The state government received a communication rejecting clearance yesterday.

Achuthanandan took up the matter with the Prime Minister and the External Affairs Minister, they said. The minister had made a formal request for him to be included in the Indian delegation of officials and politicians being sponsored by the MEA for the Beijing visit during the Olympics, which started today.

Vijayakumar's plan was to be in Beijing between August 15 and 24. PTI.

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