Visiting US Congress delegation plays delicate balancing act

Sandeep Dikshit

New Delhi, August 17

The US Congressional delegation, which visited India and even got a mention from PM Narendra Modi during his Independence Day speech from the Red Fort, played a delicate balancing role in catering to the hyperactive Hindutva organisations in the US as well as the secular constituency without which it will be difficult for them to get elected.

The spotlight was on Ro Khanna, the more well-known of the two Indian-Americans in the delegation, the other being Shri Thanedar, a first generation immigrant to the US.

Khanna got plaudits from Hindutva organisations that had till four years back been criticising him for his stance on the Kashmir lockdown. More recently Khanna had criticised the expulsion of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi from Lok Sabha and urged PM Modi to reverse the decision. But Khanna is also one of the persons instrumental in arranging PM Modi’s address at the Capitol during his June visit to Washington.

“In a heartwarming display of diplomacy and cultural exchange, we extend our sincere thanks to Ro Khanna and Michael Waltz, co-chairs of the bipartisan Congressional Caucus on India and Indian Americans, and Deborah Ross and Kat Cammack for visiting Delhi Akshardham temple,” said BAPS Public Affairs, one of the US’s leading Hindu organisations which engages with elected officials and public servants.

At the same time, Khanna also met Kasim Rasool Ilyas, the father of jailed student leader Omar Khalid, as well as people from Manipur and Haryana who briefed him on the violence that has rocked the two regions.

In a Twitter post after meeting Khanna, Mahatma Gandhi’s great grandson Tushar Gandhi posted, “Ro met with PM and Union Ministers, they thwarted his meeting Rahul Gandhi but he met Umer Khalid’s father and representatives from violence ravaged Manipur.”

Khanna though had to face heat from the social media for his interaction with a pro-Hindutva right wing social influencer.

Both co-chairsof the India Caucus who visited the country — Khanna and Micheal Waltz — are also members of influential US Congress committees on defence and intelligence, respectively.