Sibal apologises to Anand after row over nationality queries

Hyderabad/New Delhi, Aug 24 (PTI) A move to confer
honorary doctorate on Chess icon Vishwanathan Anand was
Tuesday at the centre of a raging storm after the HRD ministry
reportedly raised questions over his Indian nationality but
Minister Kapil Sibal stepped in to apologise to him.
The Human Resource Development Minister, who called
Anand over telephone in Hyderabad, said there was no question
of his ministry raising queries being raised over Anand's
citizenship and that he has persuaded him to accept the
doctorate.
But the chess wizard politely turned it down for the
present saying he would accept it on a later date because of
his travel schedule and prior commitments now now.
Anand was to have been conferred the honorary
doctorate along with Prof David Mumford of Harward University
at a function here last night coinciding with the current
International Congress of Mathematicians in Hyderabad.
Bureaucratic hurdles caused by the Union Human
Resource Development Ministry put paid to the plans of
University of Hyderabad to confer the honour on the
39-year-old champion, who lives in Spain for the last few
years but holds an Indian passport.
As reports on the unsavoury episode broke out in the
media, Sibal sought to do some damage limitation. He called
Anand in Hyderabad over telephone and expressed his apologies,
apparently over questions raised in regard to his citizenship.
"But in the case of Vishwanathan Anand there is no no
question (of questions over his citizenship). We are sorry for
what has transpired. I told him even if some Indian were to
acquire foreign nationality we are still proud of him," the
minister told a hurriedly-called press conference in Delhi.
He blamed bureaucratic procedures in the delay on
clearance of the doctorate degree for Anand, who maintained he
had always played under the Indian flag and held an Indian
passport.
"I don't understand this issue. I am in Hyderabad to
play with Mathematicians and enjoy the Congress," said the
Grand Master who went ahead to play a game of Chess
simultaneously with 40 mathematicians.
Her defeated all his opponents in a game that lasted
over three hours and participated in a question-answer session
with them. The media was told not not to put any questions.
Earlier, he was accorded a grand welcome at the
Congress venue and Anand remained unfazed and did not not
betray any emotions over the treatment meted out to him.

Anand's wife said the minister was apologetic when he
spoke to the player and wanted the matter to be put to rest
now now.
But she made it clear that the issue of questions over
Anand's nationality did not not come as a surprise to them as
they were asked to give a copy of the passport, which she had
sent to the HRD ministry in June last year.
Giving his version of the story, Sibal dismissed
suggestions that the ministry had doubted Anand's nationality.
"There is no no question, there is no no issue. There
is no no question of nationality (about Anand)," he said
adding that he had cleared the file on Anand's name for
conferring the doctorate on May 22 last year.
But, he said, there were five other names. "When I
went to the Visitor it came back to me with reference to an
individual. Then the University event was over. This issue
arose when another file came regarding a foreigner. If I had
known I would have put my foot down," he said.
Sibal said he told Anand that the honorary degree
could be conferred today itself. But he indicated that he had
some problem about this evening. "Then I told him that any
date of his convenience for the function was okay. He has
accepted it," the minister said.
He said procedural error has led to problems regarding
doctorate for Anand. Immediate corrective action was taken.
It should not nto take time (to implement such decisions) but
sometime it happens, he said adding this was not not the time
for apportioning blame on anyone.
Hailing Anand for his achievements, Sibal said
"Vishwanathan Anand has done India proud like Arjun Atwal (who
won a top professional golf championship in the US yesterday).
We should be proud of those who climb the heights of global
excellence."
Meanwhile, the International Congress of
Mathematicians (ICM) expressed sadness over not not being able
to confer the honorary doctorate on Anand because of
"insensitive bureaucratic obstructions".
The ICM executive committee has conveyed its deep
apology to Anand over this development, its Chairman M S
Raghunathan and Secretary Rajat Tandon said in a statement.
They said the idea of conferring an honorary
doctorate was mooted as early as in October 2009. The UoH took
up the proposal and did all the necessary work and submitted
it for clearance to The HRD Ministry, they said.
Despite repeated follow-up by the university, the HRD
Ministry did not forward this proposal for signature by the
President of India, they claimed adding, as a result "this
unfortunate turn of events had taken place".
Tandon earlier told reporters that as per UoH Vice
Chancellor Syed Hasnain's direction they had made necessary
arrangements for conferring the Ph.D degree tonight
itself.
"He (Anand) changed his mind and he is not willing to
take the degree. He doesn't want it (degree) due to the
controversy," Tandon said.
Asked whether Anand has said no, Raghunathan said,
"He has not told me". PTI VVK
MYR