In a significant occasion for Indian Americans, six of their leaders were sworn in as members of the US House of Representatives on Friday, the biggest occasion ever for this minority ethnic community in the United States.
“When I was first sworn in twelve years ago, I was the only Indian American member of Congress and only the third in American history. Now, our coalition is six strong! I look forward to welcoming even more Indian Americans into the halls of Congress. Looking forward to the years to come!” Congressman Dr. Ami Bera said in a post on Twitter.
Bera, the senior among them, who has been sworn in for the seventh consecutive term as the representative of California’s 7th Congressional District, also posted a photo of all the six Indian American congressmen from the House floor.
Suhash Subramaniam, representing Virginia’s 10th Congressional District, is the newest Indian American to become a member of the House of Representatives. He posted a photo of himself with his family and House Speaker Mike Johnson, saying, “First day on the job! Honored to be sworn into the #119thCongress and excited to get to work delivering results for VA10 “
Mr. Thanedar, the congressman who represents Michigan’s 13th Congressional District, posted a selfie of himself from the House floor, saying, “Ready to serve.” All six Indian American lawmakers are from the Democratic Party and voted for House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries in the election for House Speakership. Republican Mike Johnson was elected House Speaker.
Congressman Ro Khanna represents California’s 17th congressional district and Raja Krishnamurthy represents Illinois’s 8th congressional district. Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal, representing Washington State’s Seventh Congressional District, is the first Indian American woman to be elected to the House of Representatives.
All three – Khanna, Krishnamurthy and Jayapal – have taken oath for the fifth consecutive time, during which they have emerged as powerful MLAs in their own ways.
Krishnamurthy is also the ranking member of the powerful China Committee and a member of the House Intelligence Committee. Jayapal is the leader of the extremely powerful progressive group of MPs. Khanna is not only a member of several powerful House committees, but he is also seen as a potential presidential candidate in a few years.
All six Indian Americans constitute an informal Samosa Caucus, a term coined by Krishnamurthy. When sworn in for his first term in 2012, Dr. Bera had expressed his desire to have 10 Indian Americans in the House of Representatives.
Many Indian Americans seeking election to the House lost elections either during the primaries or in the November 5 general election. At least three of them were women: Sushila Jaipal, Bhavani Patel and Krystle Kaul.
Dalip Singh Saund was the first Indian American to be elected to the House of Representatives in 1957. Moreover, he was the first Sikh to be elected for three consecutive terms. He was from the Democratic Party.
It took almost five decades for another Indian American to enter the US House of Representatives. Bobby Jindal represented Louisiana’s 1st Congressional District from 2005 to 2008. He later became the Governor of Louisiana twice, making him the first Indian American to be elected as the Governor of a US state. Jindal is the only Indian American to be elected to the House on the Republican ticket.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
