DHAKA: External affairs minister Sushma Swaraj on Sunday admitted to helping controversial IPL founder and enforcement directorate offender Lalit Modi with his travel documents, but made it clear that she did so only on humanitarian grounds.

Responding to a Times Now expose that showed Sushma helped Lalit Modi with travel documents, the external affairs minister accepted that she was indeed in touch with Lalit Modi in the month of July, 2014.

The expose also revealed that Swaraj’s husband was seeking favor at different levels from Lalit Modi in return of the travel documents.

In a series of tweets, the external affairs minister tried to clarify her position, amid calls for her resignation from the opposition.

‘Sometime in July 2014 Lalit Modi spoke to me that his wife was suffering from cancer and her surgery was fixed for 4th August in Portugal,’ Sushma says, adding, ‘he told me that he had to be present in the hospital to sign the consent papers’, reports The Times of India.

Sushma says that Lalit Modi informed her that UK government was ready to give him travel documents, but was restrained by a UPA Government communication that this will spoil Indo-UK relations.

‘Taking a humanitarian view, I conveyed to the British High Commissioner that ‘British Government should examine the request of Lalit Modi as per British rules and regulations. If the British Government chooses to give travel documents to Lalit Modi that will not spoil our bilateral relations,’ Sushma tweeted.

BDST: 1454 HRS, JUN 14, 2015
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