Hillary directs envoy to watch Indian polls closely

NEW GOVT'S FOREIGN GUESTS: Peter Burleigh called on Chirjaneevi and Chandrababu Naidu.

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New Delhi: US is watching the elections in India very closely. Reports say that US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton could be the first foreign dignitary to visit India once a new government is formed and US embassy sources say that Hillary has directed the US Mission in Delhi to take personal interest in the Indian elections.

US Embassy sources told CNN IBN that, "Hillary hopes to visit India soon. She was taking a personal interest in the election and had asked the acting ambassador in Delhi to do the same."

So Washington's man in Delhi, Peter Burleigh has been to Lucknow, Mumbai and Hyderabad reaching out to unfamiliar provincial leaders. He's called on Telugu superstar-turned-politician Chirjaneevi and former Andhra Pradesh chief minister Chandrababu Naidu.

However, Embassy insiders say Burleigh did not advise Naidu to place his eggs in the Congress basket.

Intriguingly Burleigh did discuss the Indo-US Nuclear Deal with BJP's prime ministerial candidate, LK Advani, in Delhi.

American Consul General, Paul Folmsbee says, "Ambassador Burleigh is only looking at the process, nothing more than that. What we try to do is to make contact with different political parties and have them explain to us all the political issues and understand them."

Diplomats say there's nothing new in this exercise. It is something that happens during every election and is part of their job.

(With inputs from Parrull in New Delhi)