By Azad Essa / Middle East Eye
The Indian government attempted to pressure a global interfaith conference to reinstate a Hindu leader after she was removed from the event due to her ties to the Hindu far right, Middle East Eye can reveal.
According to an email seen by MEE, the Indian consulate in Chicago urged organisers at the Parliament of World Religions (PoWR) to reconsider their decision to axe Nivedita Bhide, the vice president of Vivekananda Kendra, from speaking at the five-day event.
For weeks, Bhide was listed as a “featured luminary” on the PoWR website, but days before she was expected to address a plenary on 14 August, her name was dropped following revelations that she routinely reshared Islamophobic material on her social media accounts and participated in events organised by far-right groups.
A source at the PoWR confirmed to MEE that Bhide had been pulled from the programme after concerns were raised that her presence went against the spirit of the event.
On the day she was originally scheduled to speak at the event, the consul general of India in Chicago, Somnath Ghosh, sent an email to PoWR organisers, urging them to reconsider their decision.
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