Sibi George, a senior Indian diplomat, came into the limelight after a tense exchange with a Norwegian journalist during a Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) press conference on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Norway, where he strongly defended India’s record on democracy, human rights and press freedom.
Sibi George is currently Secretary (West) for the Middle East and Africa, where he oversees India’s engagement with countries in Europe, West Asia and multilateral forums. An Indian Foreign Service officer of the 1993 batch, he has previously served as India’s Ambassador to Japan, Switzerland, Kuwait, the Holy See, Liechtenstein and the Marshall Islands.
George began his diplomatic career in Cairo, then held posts in Doha, Islamabad, and Washington, D.C., where he handled political, commercial, and consular affairs. He also served as Deputy Chief of Mission in Tehran and Riyadh and worked in several important departments at MEA headquarters in New Delhi, including East Asia and the India-Africa Forum Summit Coordination Team.
Originally from Kottayam district in Kerala, George is a gold medalist in both graduation and post-graduation, and has trained at institutions including the American University in Cairo, IIM Ahmedabad, and Indian Business School. In 2014, he received the SK Singh Award for Excellence in the Indian Foreign Service from the Middle East Airlines.
Prime Minister Modi’s ongoing tour of Europe
Prime Minister Modi is currently on a five-nation diplomatic tour across Europe and the Gulf, aimed at strengthening India’s strategic, economic and technological partnerships with key countries.
The Prime Minister has already visited the United Arab Emirates, the Netherlands and Sweden before arriving in Norway. Italy is scheduled to be the last stop of the tour. According to the Middle East News Agency, the visit focuses on trade, cooperation in the field of energy and emerging technologies, green transformation partnerships, and geopolitical coordination with European countries.
However, the Norwegian leg of the trip attracted attention after a journalist from a Norwegian newspaper publicly criticized Prime Minister Modi for not taking questions during the joint press interaction. In a post on X, the journalist shared a video of the Prime Minister leaving the venue and wrote that Norway ranked first on the World Press Freedom Index while India ranked much lower.
These comments later extended to MEA’s official press conference where Indian officials faced repeated questions about democracy and press freedom in India.
A tense exchange with journalists in Oslo
During the press conference, the Norwegian journalist asked Indian officials why the world should “trust” India and whether the Indian government would address alleged human rights concerns. She also wondered whether Prime Minister Modi would start taking “critical questions” from the media.
Responding firmly, Sibi George said India is a “5,000-year-old civilization” and highlighted the country’s democratic traditions, constitutional safeguards and contributions during global crises such as the Covid-19 pandemic.
“You’re asking a question, not asking me to answer a certain way,” George said at one point when he was interrupted during his answer.
George also pointed out India’s large and diverse media ecosystem, saying critics often fail to understand the size and complexity of the country. He noted that India has hundreds of television news channels operating in multiple languages and stressed that citizens have constitutional remedies if their rights are violated.
He also said that India had granted voting rights to women since the beginning of independence in 1947, unlike many Western countries where women gained voting rights decades later. He said during the dialogue: “We believe in equality, and we believe in human rights.”
The interaction has since sparked widespread debate online, with supporters praising George for staunchly defending India’s image abroad, while critics said the questions raised by journalists deserved direct answers from the Prime Minister himself.
