Govt rules out barring Salman Rushdie's India visit
The row over author Salman Rushdie is refusing to die down. Today, Law Minister Salman Khurshid made it clear that Mr Rushdie cannot be stopped from coming to India as he has a valid PIO card, which means he does not need a visa. While the law minister spoke on legalities, he did not take a firm position on the calls for such bans. The Congress is in a bind because of the UP polls - they don't want to seem to be ignoring the sentiments of the Muslim community, but today, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah also stepped into the controversy with a new twist - he says Rushdie's visit is not an issue for Muslims.
