A proposed meeting with New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani was among the factors that led the Centre to deny political clearance to Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy’s proposed visit to the US, top diplomatic sources told The Tribune on Friday.The MEA, however, did not officially spell out the reasons for withholding clearance, saying only that Reddy’s proposed programme in the US was not considered appropriate for his office and the purpose of the visit.“Visits by Chief Ministers, as well as other dignitaries, are assessed by the Ministry of External Affairs for the purpose of granting political clearance. The proposed programme in such cases must be appropriate to the office held and the purpose of the visit. In this specific instance, that was not the case regarding the visit to the United States, and therefore, clearance was denied,” MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said at the weekly briefing. He added that clearance had been granted for Reddy’s visit to the UK.Top diplomatic sources said a proposed interaction with Mamdani, among other aspects of the US itinerary, had become a key concern for the Centre. The sources, however, did not suggest that it was the sole reason for the denial. Mamdani, who has been critical of the Narendra Modi government, has previously made pointed remarks about the current Indian dispensation and its leadership. His interactions on Indian political and judicial matters have also drawn a sharp response from New Delhi.In January, India had strongly rebuked Mamdani after he wrote a personal letter to jailed activist Umar Khalid. New Delhi had, at that time, stressed that public representatives should respect the independence of the judiciary in other democracies and refrain from expressing personal views on foreign legal matters.According to the Telangana Chief Minister’s office, Reddy was scheduled to travel from the UK to Boston as part of a delegation to forge partnerships with leading educational institutions and promote Telangana as a global knowledge and skills hub.The delegation had already reached the UK when the state government was informed that political clearance for the US leg would not be granted, the CMO said. It described the decision as a “denial on political grounds”, saying the US visit was intended to attract world-renowned educational institutions to Telangana.