Jill Biden wanted to keep diamond gifted by PM Modi, returned it over high valuation

Washington: Former US First Lady Dr Jill Biden says she was interested in keeping a diamond gifted to her by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, but ultimately returned it to the federal government after learning that US officials valued it far above its stated price.

In her memoir View from the East Wing: A Memoir, Biden offers a behind-the-scenes account of life at the White House and the strict rules governing gifts received by America’s First Family.

Among the gifts she recalls most vividly was a 7.5-carat synthetic diamond presented by PM Modi during his state visit to Washington. The book hit the stores this week.

“Sometimes little things—flowers, wine—but sometimes big ones, like the 7.5-carat synthetic diamond Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi handed me at his state visit—a symbol of his country’s bid to become a leader in lab-grown gems,” Biden writes.

She says the diamond immediately caught her attention.

“The diamond was gorgeous,” Biden writes.

Under US ethics rules, however, the gift did not belong to her personally.

“But it wasn’t given to me, technically. It was given to the First Lady, which meant it belonged to the federal government,” she writes.

Biden explains that gifts above a certain value are reviewed and catalogued by government officials. Recipients are allowed to purchase such gifts if they pay the assessed fair market value.

In PM Modi’s case, she initially thought that might be possible.

“The prime minister said that it had been handmade in his hometown for $2,500. He even had the bill of sale,” Biden writes. “I thought, Maybe I’ll buy it.”

That plan changed after the gift was formally assessed.

“Then the State Department appraised it at $20,000, so I did not,” she writes.

Instead, Biden was permitted to borrow the diamond and wear it for official events.

“I was told I could display it in my office or borrow it to wear. So I had it put in a ring setting and wore it to official functions,” she writes.

The arrangement lasted only as long as her tenure in the White House.

“When we left office, I gave it back,” Biden writes. She says the ring was eventually returned to government storage.

“The ring went into a warehouse along with an infinitude of other presidential gifts, many of which are simply destroyed.”

The memoir uses the episode to illustrate the often misunderstood financial and ethical rules surrounding White House life. Biden writes that official residences, events and gifts are subject to extensive regulations designed to ensure that public office holders do not personally benefit from government resources or foreign gifts.

She contrasts the PM Modi diamond with a bracelet given to her by French First Lady Brigitte Macron. Because of its sentimental value, Biden chose to buy that gift from the government so she could keep it after leaving office.

“I paid the State Department so I could take it with me when we left office,” she writes. “I still wear it every day.”

Biden also cited other gifts received during her tenure, including “a brooch by Ukraine made out of bomb shrapnel,” which she said officials valued at $14,063.

PM Modi’s state visit to the United States in June 2023 was one of the most significant diplomatic engagements between New Delhi and Washington during the Biden administration. More than 10,000 Indian Americans attended the event at the White House, The visit featured a state dinner at the White House and highlighted growing cooperation between the two countries in defence, technology, semiconductors and strategic affairs.

IANS