BJP MP refuses US visa after being asked to remove 'pagdi'

August 27, 2016 13:12

A BJP member of the Lok Sabha refused a US visa after he was asked to remove his pagdi at the US embassy for security reasons, asserting that his turban was a matter of his "traditional honour' which he cannot remove.

Virendra Singh, a three-time Lok Sabha MP and presently representing Bhadohi (UP), said the US embassy had first interviewed him over farming issues and later invited him to visit to their country.

Singh said he went to the embassy for the purpose of visa and was asked to remove his pagdi.

I cannot do it. I am a farmer and pagdi is a matter of honour for me. It is also a matter of the countrys honour to me. How can I remove my pagdi for the sake of security? I can never do it. It is they (US embassy) who had invited me to visit their country. I refused the visa. I said I am not interested, he said.

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