US President Biden excludes from his administration Democrats Sonal Shah and Amit Jani with RSS-BJP links
Sonal Shah’s father, who has served on Biden’s unity task force, was the president of Overseas Friends of BJP-USA and is the founder of RSS-run Ekal Vidyalaya. Jani’s family has ties with PM Modi
United States President Joe Biden has nominated around 20 Indian-Americans, including 13 women, to key positions in his administration. However, the list has excluded some Indian-Americans who had worked on the Biden campaign, allegedly due to their RSS-BJP links.
According to a report in The Tribune, Sonal Shah and Amit Jani have not made to Biden’s list of nominated Indian-Americans to be appointed in his administration. They have been excluded allegedly due to their links with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)
Sonal Shah’s father, who has served on Biden’s unity task force, was the president of Overseas Friends of BJP-USA and is the founder of RSS-run Ekal Vidyalaya. Shah has reportedly raised funds for Ekal Vidyalaya, according to the report.
Jani was the ‘Muslim Outreach’ coordinator of ‘Name Biden’ campaign. His family reportedly has ties with PM Modi and other BJP leaders
The exclusion of Jani may have been the case of lax vetting, it said.
According to the report, those with RSS-BJP links have not found a place in Biden’s team because secular Indian-American organisations have urged his transition team to keep such individuals on the sidelines.
The Democrats may have been more cautious about including those with the BJP-RSS links in the government following renewed activism by organisations opposed to the Hindutva project and also after witnessing the fate of such candidates, said the report citing sources.
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