May 8, 2002	Wednesday	Safar 24, 1423

KOLKATA, May 7: The communist government of West Bengal state said on Tuesday it was investigating a visit by US diplomats to a madressah last week.

The US embassy’s counsellor for public affairs, James Callahan, and two officials of the US consulate in Kolkata, visited the government-funded madressah in the capital of West Bengal last Friday.

The visit has angered the state’s ruling communists, who have traditionally been strong critics of US foreign policy.

“The madressah is a state government-funded institution. The US embassy should have informed the state government about the visit,” Mohammad Salim, minister for minorities development and welfare, said. “There is (now) a probe. We have to look into it.”

He said the government was concerned because of what he alleged was Washington’s “past record of interfering in affairs of independent nations”, citing as an example US help to the Afghan Mujahideen.

The US consul-general in Kolkata said there was no reason for the West Bengal government to be concerned about the visit.

“There’s no question of interference. I reject talk of interference out of hand,” he said. “The officials wanted to learn about the Muslim education system and about India in a wider sense. I’m surprised at the controversy.”—Reuters