AHMEDABAD: At least 35 organisations representing NRIs in the US have urged Prime Minister Manmohan Singh not to contest the US' denial of a visa to Narendra Modi.

Members of the Coalition Against Genocide (CAG), in an open letter to Singh on Saturday said, "the denial of visa to Modi is a clear victory for all Indians and for supporters of human rights and justice in the US and in India."

The letter, signed by six NRIs, says "given that your government had recommended to the American embassy that Modi be given a multi-entry visa, we can understand your discomfiture at the new turn of events.

"However, we urge you to look at this not through a nationalistic lens or as a violation of protocol, but to consider the larger issues involved." Criticising Modi for being "delinquent in his duties as CM," it pointed out that he "unleashed a virulent campaign against Muslims even after the pogroms and particularly during the campaigning for the December 2002 assembly polls".

Appalled by the Indian government's strong protest to the American embassy asking for an "urgent reconsideration," the signatories urged Singh "to think of the valiant struggle for justice waged by the pogrom survivors and human rights activists in Gujarat, and the constant harassment they faced from Mr Modi's government and his swayamsevak friends."

The letter has been signed by George Abraham, Angana Chatterji, Sapna Gupta, Ashwini Rao, Shaik Ubaid, and Usha Zacharias.