BENGALURU:
UK’s King Charles III and Queen consort Camilla paid a quiet visit to Bengaluru over the weekend, giving media glare a skip.
The royal couple’s “super private visit” saw them spending four days in India’s tech hub on their return journey to the UK from Samoa, where the 75-year-old King Charles participated in the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM)-2024 as the head of the Commonwealth bloc of 56 countries.
King Charles and Camilla had embarked on their maiden Oceania tour on Oct 18, visiting Australia and Samoa, and wrapped up the trip on Oct 26. It was the king’s first overseas trip since being diagnosed with cancer earlier this year.
Sources in the state protocol and police said that on their return journey, “They decided to take a rejuvenation break at Soukya Health and Wellness Centre in Bengaluru’s Whitefield, with their private jet landing at HAL airport Saturday (Oct 26) night”. The couple appreciated Dr Issac Mathai Nooranal’s unique treatment model that integrates different systems of medicine. Soukya was founded by Dr Mathai, the holistic health consultant for the British royal family.
Sources said a doctor attached to the royal family accompanied the couple. “Since it was a private visit, there was no formal welcome from state govt. They are scheduled to leave Bengaluru early hours Wednesday,” a source said… Even traffic was regulated in Bengaluru in a way as to not evoke any curiosity about the VVIP movement. Dr Mathai and Soukya staff were not reachable when TOI tried contacting them.
In Australia, King Charles interacted with a 10,000-plus crowd that had come to see him in the backdrop of the Sydney Opera House.
