The external affairs ministry (MEA) on Thursday said British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s visit for this year’s Republic Day parade was on, amid speculation that it may have to be cancelled owing to the rapid spread of a mutated version of the coronavirus in the UK that has forced several countries including India to stop flights to Britain.

Asked if the visit was still on considering India has already stopped flights to and from the UK till the year-end, MEA spokesman Anurag Srivastava said: “We had invited the Prime Minister of the UK as the chief guest for the Republic Day parade in 2021. When UK foreign secretary Dominic Raab was here, he had publicly confirmed his (Johnson’s) acceptance. So we look forward to welcoming the Prime Minister here.”

The Shiv Sena has taken a swipe at the Narendra Modi government for going ahead with the visit, likening it to hosting US President Donald Trump in February-end by which time the World Health Organisation had already declared the coronavirus a “public health emergency of international concern”.

In the party mouthpiece Saamana, the Shiv Sena questioned whether it would be alright for Johnson to visit India in January when the world had suspended flights in and out of the UK and India, too, insists on visitors from Britain quarantining for 14 days.

Farm plan

British MPs are in the process of drafting a letter to Johnson to clarify his understanding of the farmers’ protests and also raise the issue with Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the visit.

An initiative of Labour MP Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi, the effort has cross-party support. Earlier, he had got three dozen MPs from across all parties to sign on a letter to Raab, urging the UK government to speak up for the rights of farmers to peaceful protest and also raise the issue of the three contentious farm laws with the Indian government as 92 per cent of Sikhs in Britain have ties to agricultural land in India.

Dhesi spoke about the farmers’ protest in the House of Commons earlier this month and Johnson’s reply had raised eyebrows as he had said it was an India-Pakistan issue that was for the two countries to resolve.

The British government later clarified that the Prime Minister had “misheard” the question.

Given the strength of the Punjabi and Sikh diaspora in the UK, several MPs are being petitioned by their constituents to raise the issue. Also, the protesting farmers here have made it clear that they would tap their links in the diaspora to mobilise opinion.