New Delhi:
External Affairs Minister S M Krishna today found himself in a controversy over his extended stay in London to watch a Wimbledon match but maintained the expenditure incurred during those two days were paid out of his "own pocket."
Mr Krishna had gone to the UK on June 29 and had official talks with British Foreign Secretary William Hague till Thursday. But Krishna, who was staying at the posh Bentley Hotel, stayed back and watched the Wimbledon men's singles semi-final between Novak Djokovic and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga on July 1.
As reports emerged that his extended stay was at the cost of taxpayers' money, Krishna told reporters that he was an avid tennis fan "but the fact is that two days, the Indian exchequer paid for my stay in London but for the subsequent two days, I think it was borne out of my own pocket. I think that should straighten the record."
The Minister also pointed out that he was "the life-long President of the All Indian Lawn Tennis Association and I am also the President of the Karnataka Tennis Association. So, it is nothing unusual for a visiting dignitary or a visiting Foreign Minister to peep into Wimbledon and take a feel of it.
"I am myself a tennis player and I love watching tennis.
I have been watching tennis since the days of Bjorn Borg in 1981. That was the first time I went to Wimbledon. So, there is nothing new."