 | |
| Date | 24 February 2020 (2020-2-24) – 25 February 2020; 5 years ago (2020-2-25) |
|---|---|
| Time | 36 hours |
| Duration | 2 days |
| Location | Narendra Modi Stadium (then Sardar Patel Stadium),Ahmedabad, India |
| Theme | Traditional |
| Organized by | Government of India |
| Participants | 100,000–125,000 |
| ||
|---|---|---|
Business and personal 45th and 47th President of the United States Incumbent Tenure Impeachments Civil and criminal prosecutions   | ||
Namaste Trump (stylised asनमस्ते TRUMP) was a tour event held on 24 and 25 February 2020 inIndia.[1] It was the inaugural visit of the thenUS PresidentDonald Trump and his family to India.[2][3] A rally event of the same name was held inAhmedabad,Gujarat, and was the highlight of the tour, as a response to the"Howdy Modi" event held inHouston,Texas, in September 2019.[4] TheMotera Stadium (now known as Narendra Modi Stadium) hosted US President Trump and his family along with Indian Prime MinisterNarendra Modi. An attendance of over 100,000 people was reported,[5] with some speculating an attendance as high as 125,000.[6] The tour was originally named "Kem Chho Trump" but was renamed by theGovernment of India to promoteIndian nationalism overregionalism.[a][7]
The main event at the stadium was organised in the afternoon and was the highlight of the President's visit to India. The event served as a platform for the US President and Indian Prime Minister to display their friendly relationship with each other.[6] While initial reports suggested that Trump would inaugurate the Motera Stadium,[8] it was later disregarded as "speculation and assumption".[9]
Trump also visited theTaj Mahal inAgra, Uttar Pradesh on the same day.[10] In Agra, the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh,Yogi Adityanath welcomed the President and the First Lady on their arrival atAgra Airport. An exposition event with 3000 cultural artists showcasing the art and culture of various regions in India also took place.[11] The Trump family then visited the Taj Mahal informally, with no official personnel except the tour guide, and protective personnel such as theUnited States Secret Service and India'sNational Security Guard.[12]
After visiting the Taj Mahal, the President and his family headed towards New Delhi, to stay at theITC Maurya, which was heavily surrounded by security personnel from both countries. They also attended the dinner banquet hosted by the President of IndiaRam Nath Kovind. The next day, the First Lady visited Sarvodaya Vidyalaya Senior Secondary Co-Educational school in Nanakpura, South Delhi. President Trump and Prime Minister Modi addressed common issues such as5G connectivity, trade deals, and signed a US$3 billion defense deal.[13]
Ahead of Trump's visit to Ahmedabad, the Gujarat state government had built a new wall.[14] The construction of this wall was protested by social workers claiming that it was created for hiding slums. However, officials denied this and said that it was built due to security reasons.[15][16] In order to keep all roads and walls around the airport spotless from the "red liquid" spat out by thepaan (transl. betel leaf) consumers during the Trump visit, the health department of theAhmedabad Municipal Corporation sealedpaan shops near the airport.[17] The Uttar Pradesh government, too, cleaned up the city of Agra[18] and released 500cusecs of water into theYamuna river to improve its "environmental condition" ahead of visit.[3][19]
Trump's visit coincided with2020 Delhi riots,[20][21] with some Indian politicians and political commentators accusing the rioters of tarnishing the country's image, and some criticising the organisation of the event.[22] The visit was criticised by theIndian National Congress, which is the main opposition to the rulingBharatiya Janata Party.[23] They claimed it to be "extravaganza" and advised the government to use this opportunity to discuss key issues.[24] Further, the leader of the Congress,Priyanka Gandhi, demanded to know which government ministry was funding the private welcoming committee with the estimated amount of₹100 crore for organising the Ahmedabad event.[25] Earlier, India's Ministry of External Affairs had stated that a private organisation, Donald Trump Abhinandan Samiti (transl. Donald Trump Welcoming Committee), was responsible for organising the Ahmedabad event.[26]
The opposition Congress has been critical of the pomp around the programmes.
Media related toNamaste Trump at Wikimedia Commons.jpg)
