Helle Lyng on visa cancellation: ‘I was told it is on orders from above’

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Helle Lyng Svendsen shot to fame in May this year when she confronted Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his unwillingness to court questions from the press during his visit to Norway.

The 29-year-old Norwegian journalist came under fire from Modi’s supporters on social media almost immediately. However, the experience did not deter Svendsen, who has since then emerged as a consistent critic of the Modi government in her writings for the newspaper Dagsavisen as well as on social media.

On Wednesday, the young journalist alleged that the Indian embassy in Oslo had revoked her visa moments before she was scheduled to depart for Hyderabad. She was supposed to participate as a delegate in the Bharat Summit organised by the Congress government in Telangana.

In this interview, Svendsen shares details of her interactions with Indian officials, how she feels about being denied an opportunity to visit India, and explains why she blames Home Minister Amit Shah for this.