Washington, September 19: US President Barack Obama is likely to stay at the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel in Mumbai, which was under siege during the 26/11 terror attack, during his maiden visit to India in November.
Sources told The Sunday Express that officials from the US Consulate in Mumbai are in touch with the hotel management for the necessary arrangements. An advance team from the US has already visited the city to lay the groundwork for Obama’s stay. The US authorities are also reported to have conducted a security audit of the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel.
The US Consulate refused to make an official comment on the issue. Sources at the Consulate said they could neither confirm nor deny the information, adding that Obama was scheduled to stay in the city for one night.
The Taj spokesperson did not respond to questions regarding the security audit and Obama’s visit.
Thirty-one people, including 12 members of the hotel staff, were killed at the Taj Hotel during the 26/11 attacks. The fifth and sixth floors of the heritage wing and the iconic dome of the hotel were badly damaged. The 107-year-old heritage wing was restored at a cost of Rs 175 crore and thrown open to the public on August 15 this year.
In July last year, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton also stayed at the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel in a show of solidarity. During her stay at the 11th floor of the hotel’s modern Tower Wing, she met staff members who had survived the terror attack.
The Taj Mahal Palace Hotel also played host to former US President Bill Clinton during his stay in Mumbai in 2000.
——-Agencies