Delhi Snubbed Palin, Magazine Says

Think Sarah Palin's visit to India wasn't political? Consider this report from Tehelka, my favorite Indian muckraker.  And don't forget: Delhi is the world's number one in "Do you know who I am?"

In an important snub, India last week cold-shouldered Sarah Palin, former Republican US governor and possible contender for the 2012 presidential election, refusing a request for ‘adequate protocol,' the magazine writes in this week's issue.

Apparently, the American Embassy in New Delhi sent a request to India’s Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) asking them to elevate the status of the Palin visit to par with a senior ministerial tour. This would have granted her extra security and a VIP escort through Delhi traffic, among other things. 

But India wasn't biting. Why?  Not because there's no love for Sarah in the land of saris.  Turns out, India is still peeved that US airports insist on frisking Indian dignitaries, forcing Sikhs to doff their turbans and the like.  (Where's the full body scanner when you need it?)