The Logical Indian Crew

Fact Check: India Was Not Invited In The Swearing-In Ceremony Of 46th US President Joe Biden

Writer: Devyani Madaik

A media enthusiast, Devyani believes in learning on the job and there is nothing off limits when it comes to work. Writing is her passion and she is always ready for a debate as well.

See article by Devyani Madaik

India, 28 Jan 2021 2:27 PM GMT | Updated 28 Jan 2021 2:31 PM GMTcheck update history

As the founding editor, Bharat had been heading the newsroom during the formation years of the organization and worked towards editorial policies, conceptualizing and designing campaign strategies and collaborations. He believes that through the use of digital media, one could engage the millennial's in rational conversations about pertinent social issues, provoking them to think and bring a behavioral change accordingly.

See article by Bharat Nayak

Creatives : Abhishek M

" An engineer by profession, Abhishek is the creative producer of the team, graphic designing is his passion and travelling his get away. In more ways than one, he makes the content visually appealing."

See article by Abhishek M

Social media users are sharing posts claiming all South Asian countries but India was invited in the swearing-in ceremony of Joe Biden as the 46th US President. The Logical Indian Fact-Check team investigated the claim.

Joe Biden took oath as the 46th President of the United States on January 20, 2021. In context to this, many social media users are speculating that all South Asian countries were invited in the inaugural ceremony of Joe Biden except India.

The viral claim reads, "USA invited all neighbouring countries of India in the inaugural ceremony of Joe Biden! But India did not get the invitation, why did this happen.. ??"

Posted by Sanjay V Jain on Sunday, 24 January 2021

The claim is viral on Facebook.

Many Twitter users are also sharing the same speculation.

USA में बाइडेन की शपथ ग्रहण मे भारत के सभी पड़ौसी देशों को निमंत्रण मिला!
लेकिन भारत को नहीं मिला ऐसा क्यों हुआ..??
— भाई शाहिद खान मेवाती (@shahidkhancnc01) January 22, 2021

Claim:

India was not invited in the swearing-in ceremony of Joe Biden as US President, while its neighbouring countries were invited.

Fact Check:

According to the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies (JCCIC), new protocols were applied for the 59th Inaugural Ceremonies due to coronavirus pandemic. According to the website of JCCIC, Senator Amy Klobuchar said, "While the pandemic has forced us to limit in-person attendance, it also brings opportunities to honour our democracy in innovative ways so that Americans across the country can experience Inauguration Day from home." JCCIC is the organisational body that plans and executes the inaugural ceremonies of the president-elect and vice president-elect of the United States at the Capitol.

According to an article by the San Diego Union-Tribune published on January 12, 2009, 'No foreign leaders are invited in the inaugural ceremonies of the president-elect and vice president-elect of the United States.' This article was written in reference to Barack Obama. According to the article, no foreign leaders were invited to the swearing-in ceremony of Barak Obama in 2009. The article quoted an official who said, "Foreign leaders are traditionally discouraged from attending inaugurations due to enormous crowds and security concerns."

While no foreign leaders are invited in the ceremony, foreign Diplomats from various nations of the world are invited. According to a report by Voice of Asia, foreign diplomats from not just India but also Russia, China, Ireland, Pakistan and Afghanistan were invited in the ceremony.

Indian ambassador to the US, Taranjit Singh Sandhu, also retweeted a tweet by the official Twitter account of the Embassy of India in the US. According to the tweet of the Embassy of India in the US, "Ambassador @SandhuTaranjitS at the Capitol to attend 59th Presidential Inauguration - Oath of Office Ceremony of US President-elect Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. & Vice President-elect Kamala Harris."