Following the debacle with his BMW claim, Punjab CM Mann has angered Indian diplomats.

The mistake made by Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann when he declared that automaker BMW had chosen to establish a new manufacturing plant in his state during his visit to Germany has angered the diplomats in the external affairs ministry.

Government sources informed News18 that the episode had "damaged the credibility" of the nation and Indian diplomacy overseas and had "made the diplomats feel very ashamed." Immediately after, the BMW Group refuted Mann's assertion.

Exaggerated and unjustified

Such inflated and unfounded statements were unwise. The conference had been organised by our diplomats when the CM was representing the nation abroad (with BMW). The diplomats are now feeling the effects of this mistake. According to a source, it damages the nation's and government's credibility.

According to sources, a similar incident occurred last year when Delhi's chief minister, Arvind Kejriwal, asserted that a Singaporean version of the Covid vaccine was dangerous for children. As a result, Singapore lodged a bitter protest with the ministry of external affairs, and India's high commissioner there was summoned. S. Jaishankar, the minister of external affairs, was forced to say that "the Delhi CM does not speak for India" at that point.

FAUX PAS MANN

On Wednesday, the BMW Group in India issued a statement denying any plans to establish further production facilities in Punjab. The BMW Group has a production facility in Chennai, a parts warehouse in Pune, a training facility in Gurgaon NCR, and a well-established dealer network spread throughout the country's major metropolises. In a press release, BMW Group India declared that it had no intentions to establish further manufacturing facilities in Punjab.

The Punjabi government had previously declared that the business had consented to locate its car part manufacturing facility there. According to a news release from the government, "the efforts of Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann to lure significant investments from Germany bore fruit on Tuesday when leading auto giant BMW committed to set up its auto part manufacturing business in the state."

The Aam Aadmi Party attempted to provide a somewhat unconvincing defence on Thursday, claiming that Mann had visited with BMW officials at their head office in Germany and that a company's head office and national office are two separate things. AAP continues to assert that BMW's German headquarters expressed interest in opening a facility in Punjab following a proposal made by the chief minister.

However, the outright rejection of any such agreement by BMW has embarrassment for Indian diplomacy.