Kathmandu: A key Nepalese Maoist Minister faced embarrassment when he was detained at Abu Dhabi International Airport by security for over four hours for not having travel visa to Germany.
Lokendra Bista Magar, Minister for Tourism and Civil Aviation and central member of Unified CPN-Maoist, who was travelling to Germany on an official visit, was stopped by the police at the airport and questioned for four hours as he was travelling without a visa stamp in his passport, according to the sources. Bista, accompanied by his wife Ganga, reached Abu Dhabi from Kathmandu on Monday on his way to attend a five day ITB Berlin Convention 2012 from March 7 to 12 to promote Nepalese tourism.
Nepalese Embassy in UAE had to intervene to rescue the stranded minister by applying for a visa for the minister, who had to spent two nights at a hotel near the airport in detention. The minister`s travails were due to misunderstanding of his aide, who mistook a visa request note by the foreign ministry to the German Embassy for a travel visa.
Bista is the first Nepali politician who was interrogated by foreign security personnel at any international airport.
PTI