The Seychelles government said on Thursday it was reviewing how a “pre-final working layout” of a citation conferring a presidential citation on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, including typographical and spelling errors, became public.
The citation, described by the Seychelles government as the Indian Ocean archipelago’s highest presidential distinction, was instituted on June 24, three days before Modi’s visit to the country to participate as guest of honour in celebrations marking the golden jubilee of the national day.
The misspelling of the words “Republic” and “Seychelles” in a seal affixed to a copy of the citation released by the BJP were widely discussed on social media and even triggered questions about the authenticity of the document.
The foreign ministry of Seychelles referred to the image of the presidential citation for the “Guardian of the Blue Horizon” distinction that was circulated widely on social media and the press since the conferral ceremony on June 28 and said the honour is genuine.
“It was duly instituted by the Cabinet on 24th June 2026 and conferred by President Patrick Herminie on His Excellency Shri Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of the Republic of India, during the Golden Jubilee National Day celebrations,” the ministry said in a statement.
{{/usCountry}}“It was duly instituted by the Cabinet on 24th June 2026 and conferred by President Patrick Herminie on His Excellency Shri Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of the Republic of India, during the Golden Jubilee National Day celebrations,” the ministry said in a statement.
{{/usCountry}}The conferral, the title and the recognition of Modi’s contributions “are not in question”.
“The specific image of the citation document now circulating online was a pre-final working layout, generated in part using digital design tools during preparation of the citation under a compressed timeline, and was never approved as the final version. It contains typographical and spelling errors, including on the seal, which the Ministry acknowledges and regrets,” the statement said.
The ministry also acknowledged that the pre-final working layout did not bear Herminie’s actual signature and had a “placeholder used in the draft layout process”.
“This draft was not intended for public release and should not have entered circulation; the Ministry is reviewing how this occurred,” the statement said.
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