Close X
Sunday, December 1, 2024
ADVT 
International

All 5 Indian American Lawmakers Nominated To Key Congressional Panels

Darpan News Desk IANS, 16 Jan, 2017 11:49 AM
    All five Indian American lawmakers have been nominated to key Congressional panels, the media here reported.
     
    All five are Democrats, as are the bulk of Indian-Americans. 
     
    US Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal, elected to the House of Representatives from Seattle, will serve on the House Judiciary Committee, helping to oversee the federal-court system and law-enforcement agencies, said a report in the Seattle Times.
     
    Jayapal said she looks forward to working on immigration reform, criminal-justice reform, reproductive rights and voting rights.
     
     
    "I'm proud to have led efforts for some of the most progressive immigration policies in the nation," Jayapal said in a statement. "In the 115th Congress, I pledge to fight for our progressive values, and block the Trump administration's plans to deport vulnerable undocumented immigrants, create a Muslim registry and violate our civil rights and civil liberties."
     
    Congressman Ro Khanna was appointed to two key committees - Budget and Armed Services, reported daily Mercury News. He represents the 17th District of California, which covers the Silicon Valley communities of Cupertino, Fremont, Newark, Santa Clara, and Sunnyvale.
     
    Indian American Raja Krishnamoorthi, who was sworn in as a Member of the US House of Representatives earlier this month, would be serving on two influential committees.
     
     
    In addition to being the voice of Illinois' Eighth Congressional District, the Democrat will serve on the House Education and Workforce Committee, as well as the House Democratic Policy and Steering Committee, indiawest.com reported.
     
    "These committee assignments will give my constituents a voice to make sure I can stand up for working families every day by focusing on job creation and affordable higher education," said Krishnamoorthi. 
     
     
    Congressman Ami Bera was renominated to the House Foreign Affairs Committee and House Science, Space and Technology Committee. He is the senior most among all Indian American lawmakers in the House of Representatives and is also co-chair of the Congressional Caucus on India and Indian Americans, said a report.
     
    Kamala Harris, first Indian American to serve in the US Senate, will serve on four influential committees - the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee; the Select Committee on Intelligence; the Committee on Environment & Public Works; and the Committee on the Budget.
     
     
    Harris said that her committee assignments in the US Senate will be "key battlegrounds in the future of our country", the Los Angeles Times reported.
     
    "At a time when so many Californians and Americans are uncertain about our future, I will aggressively fight for our families and the ideals of our nation," Harris said.
     
    2016 was a bumper year for the Indian-American community, with a record haul of four in the House of Representatives, and their first seat in the Senate.

    MORE International ARTICLES

    Evidence Insufficient On Arrested Indian? Pak Denies Sartaj Aziz Remarks

    Evidence Insufficient On Arrested Indian? Pak Denies Sartaj Aziz Remarks
    Pakistan Prime Minister’s Advisor on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz on Wednesday admitted that the government was presented with only “insufficient evidence” on alleged Indian spy Kulbhushan Jadhav who is under detention. 

    Evidence Insufficient On Arrested Indian? Pak Denies Sartaj Aziz Remarks

    Shashi Tharoor's Home Robbed, 'Swachh Bharat' Award Among Stolen Items

    Congress leader and Lok Sabha MP Shashi Tharoor's house in the posh Lutyens area here was burgled and valuables including an "antique Nataraja idol" have been stolen, police said today.

    Shashi Tharoor's Home Robbed, 'Swachh Bharat' Award Among Stolen Items

    Indian Spiritual Guru's Birthday Cake Sets Guinness Record in US

    Indian Spiritual Guru's Birthday Cake Sets Guinness Record in US
    A new Guinness World Record has been set in the US for most candles on a birthday cake - where a staggering 72,585 candles were lit on the occasion of late Indian spiritual leader Sri Chinmoy's 85th birth anniversary.

    Indian Spiritual Guru's Birthday Cake Sets Guinness Record in US

    Pak Court Warns Nawaz Sharif On Plea Challenging His 'Knighthood'

    Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has been warned by a court after his counsel sought repeated adjournments in submitting a reply on a plea challenging the honourary 'knighthood' title given to him by Queen Elizabeth II.

    Pak Court Warns Nawaz Sharif On Plea Challenging His 'Knighthood'

    UK Lawmaker Calls On India To End Demonetisation Stress For NRIs

    UK Lawmaker Calls On India To End Demonetisation Stress For NRIs
    Britain's longest serving Indian-origin MP Virendra Sharma has called the Indian government to end the uncertainty surrounding demonetisation of Rs. 500 and Rs. 1,000 notes for NRIs and PIOs.

    UK Lawmaker Calls On India To End Demonetisation Stress For NRIs

    PIA Aircraft Crashes Enroute To Islamabad, No Survivors, Singer Junaid Jamshed Dead

    PIA Aircraft Crashes Enroute To Islamabad, No Survivors, Singer Junaid Jamshed Dead
    Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) said PK 661 lost contact with the control tower en route to the capital, Islamabad, from the northern region of Chitral.

    PIA Aircraft Crashes Enroute To Islamabad, No Survivors, Singer Junaid Jamshed Dead