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| U.S. Reaches Out to Indian Opposition Leader It Once Rebuked | U.S. Reaches Out to Indian Opposition Leader It Once Rebuked |
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| NEW DELHI — The United States has requested a meeting with Narendra Modi, a candidate for prime minister of India, signaling an attempt to establish a relationship after a chill that dates to 2005, when the American government imposed a visa ban to rebuke him for his role in religious riots in his home state. | NEW DELHI — The United States has requested a meeting with Narendra Modi, a candidate for prime minister of India, signaling an attempt to establish a relationship after a chill that dates to 2005, when the American government imposed a visa ban to rebuke him for his role in religious riots in his home state. |
| A spokesman for the United States Embassy in New Delhi confirmed that the embassy had reached out to Mr. Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party some time ago, and that a meeting would take place. The spokesman, Peter Vrooman, described the invitation to meet with Ambassador Nancy J. Powell as “part of our concentrated outreach to senior political and economic leaders, which began in November, to highlight the U.S.-India relationship.” | A spokesman for the United States Embassy in New Delhi confirmed that the embassy had reached out to Mr. Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party some time ago, and that a meeting would take place. The spokesman, Peter Vrooman, described the invitation to meet with Ambassador Nancy J. Powell as “part of our concentrated outreach to senior political and economic leaders, which began in November, to highlight the U.S.-India relationship.” |
| Nirmala Sitharaman, a Bharatiya Janata Party spokeswoman, said Tuesday that there had been “an approach from the U.S. ambassador’s office seeking an appointment with the chief minister of Gujarat.” She was referring to Mr. Modi’s present post. | Nirmala Sitharaman, a Bharatiya Janata Party spokeswoman, said Tuesday that there had been “an approach from the U.S. ambassador’s office seeking an appointment with the chief minister of Gujarat.” She was referring to Mr. Modi’s present post. |
| “By this evening, we will have information on when that is going to happen,” Ms. Sitharaman added. | “By this evening, we will have information on when that is going to happen,” Ms. Sitharaman added. |
| With anti-incumbent sentiment strong in India, the Hindu nationalist B.J.P. looks poised to make major gains in the parliamentary elections set for May, and Mr. Modi, a charismatic speaker who is drawing large crowds to his rallies, stands a good chance of becoming prime minister. | With anti-incumbent sentiment strong in India, the Hindu nationalist B.J.P. looks poised to make major gains in the parliamentary elections set for May, and Mr. Modi, a charismatic speaker who is drawing large crowds to his rallies, stands a good chance of becoming prime minister. |
| This poses a challenge for the United States and other Western countries that signaled disapproval of Mr. Modi’s handling of the riots in 2002, which left at least 1,000 people dead in Gujarat, most of them Muslims. Mr. Modi’s culpability is a matter of dispute among Indians. In December, a court rejected a petition to prosecute him, saying there was insufficient evidence. | |
| Britain ended a 10-year diplomatic boycott of Mr. Modi in October when its high commissioner met with him for 50 minutes. Mr. Modi also met with a group of ambassadors from the European Union. | |
| Pramit Pal Chaudhuri, foreign editor for The Hindustan Times, said Mr. Modi’s camp responded coolly to a previous overture from the American side, declining an invitation to attend a function with Ms. Powell in New Delhi and signaling that it expected a visit in Gujarat. The planned meeting was further delayed by the controversy over the December arrest of the diplomat Devyani Khobragade, but her return to India cleared the way to proceed. | |
| Mr. Modi has been tight-lipped about the American visa ban, leaving it unclear whether it will color the bilateral relationship should he become prime minister. Mr. Chaudhuri said some Modi advisers have pushed for retaliatory steps, “even symbolic, to indicate his displeasure with the U.S., or with Obama himself,” but he also has robust support from Indians in the United States, who do not wish to see the relationship fray. | |
| “He is a political animal, and most politicians know that holding grudges is not a way to get very far,” he said. “Modi has indicated nothing in either direction.” | |
| For more than a decade, Indians have debated whether Mr. Modi could have slowed or stopped the riots, which began when Muslims set fire to a train carrying Hindu pilgrims. In the days after the attack, riots rippled across the state, fed by a strike called by Hindu groups and encouraged by some of Mr. Modi’s associates. Mr. Modi has denied any culpability. | |
| “Truth alone triumphs,” he wrote on Twitter, after the court decision in December. | “Truth alone triumphs,” he wrote on Twitter, after the court decision in December. |
| In recent years, Mr. Modi has met with American consular officials, but not with an official of Ms. Powell’s rank. | In recent years, Mr. Modi has met with American consular officials, but not with an official of Ms. Powell’s rank. |