Centre's Denial of US Travel Clearance to Kerala Health Minister Bitterness in the Rivalry

In another Centre-Kerala government face-off location, the Union government has reportedly refused travel clearance to Kerala Health Minister Veena George, who was to deliver a speech at Johns Hopkins University, one of the world's most renowned universities, in the US. The move has sparked a political row, and political abuse of travel clearances and federal coordination are in danger.

Veena George, the minister's office stated, was approached by Johns Hopkins University — a top institution to collaborate with global public health — and was invited to deliver an address at an international event as well. She requested political clearance from the Ministry of External Affairs about two weeks ago, her office also added. In a shocking turn of events that caught the Kerala government off guard, however, the Centre reportedly denied her clearance three days ago when she was about to leave. The denial has triggered blistering reactions from opposition politicians and political commentators who see it as part of a sinister pattern.

The Centre has had such instances in the past when it denied foreign interaction by a state minister. It was only two months ago that the Centre had denied clearance to Kerala Industries Minister P Rajeev and his delegation to visit Washington to attend the American Society for Public Administration (ASPA) annual conference, where they were to deliver a presentation on Kerala's much-hyped 'Year of Enterprises' programme. While the Ministry of External Affairs was not yet making a blanket conclusion regarding the denial, the Kerala state government has called it "politiful" and "unfortunate." State government sources contend that such an event does not only enhance the reputation of Kerala in the international community but also attracts academic, health, and investment relationships which ultimately trickle down to the advantage of the state and hence the country.

The bigger question this episode raises is whether political rivalry between the Centre and opposition-governed states is increasingly spilling over into areas that cannot be partisan — i.e., discussion in academia and on international platforms.

Kerala, otherwise doing well in healthcare, particularly how it did well in keeping the Nipah virus and COVID-19 at bay, could have marketed its success story internationally. Preventing such portrayal, the earth in our perception, not just damages Kerala's reputation but also inhibits India's soft power foreign policy. Veena George, who was a journalist-turned-politician, has been Kerala's public health mission face, especially in recent years of health emergencies. Her planned visit to Johns Hopkins was an opportunity to project Kerala's decentralized model of healthcare — one that has drawn global interest. Silencing her on this forum, critics say, is an affront to India's image as a dynamic, cooperative federal republic.

Politically, the occurrence can also assist the already strained relationship between the Left Democratic Front (LDF) state government of Kerala and the Centre headed by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Some LDF leaders blamed the Union government for holding back state projects deliberately and depriving Kerala of international outreach possibilities for soiling the progressive image of the state.

As India is to be a world leader in diplomacy, technology, and development in the health sector, these internal contradictions convey conflicting messages to the world at large. Whether this incident is an isolated political event or a foreboding trend in Centre-state relations is something that can be evaluated in the coming months.