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Overseas Congress campaigns against Agnihotri

Suman Guha Mozumder in New York

An association of Indians settled in the United States has protested against the appointment of Bhishma Kumar Agnihotri as India's ambassador-at-large to the US, saying the move has 'communal' overtones.

The Indian National Overseas Congress, which is affiliated to the Congress in India, in a letter addressed to President K R Narayanan, said Indians in the US have always tried to project their native land as a secular country.

In the letter, INOC president Surinder S Malhotra said, "It pains me to bring to your attention the appointment of a member of the Sangh Parivar... and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh as ambassador-at-large for non-resident Indians by the Government of India."

He questioned how such an individual could represent the secular-minded Indian diaspora in the US.

Agnihotri's appointment, the INOC alleged, is a 'sublime message' to NRIs to get close to the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, RSS or Hindu right wing if they wished to communicate with the Indian embassy, consulates and government.

The INOC urged Narayanan to take corrective measures at the earliest.

It alleged that the motive of the Bharatiya Janata Party, which leads India's ruling alliance, "is akin to 'saffronising' not only Indians in their motherland, but also those living in the US".

Malhotra declared that his organisation was not opposed to the appointment of an individual as ambassador-at-large for NRIs, but said members of the community, rather than the government, should select the person for the post.

"We believe such a selection will have to be made on the basis of the consensus among the various Indian American organisations in the US," he told the Indo-Asian News Service.

"We do not care if that person is a supporter of the BJP or the Congress or for that matter any other party, but there has to be some system, some democratic way for selection," he added.

Malhotra said INOC members would launch a mail campaign urging Narayanan to "correct the wrong".

The INOC is also planning to invite all Indian American groups, including the Federation of Indian Associations, one of the largest bodies representing the community, for a meeting in New York to discuss the issue.

The meeting is likely to take place in two weeks' time.

Agnihotri, chancellor of the Southern University Law Centre in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, was appointed ambassador-at-large on August 23.

India's Ambassador to the US Lalit Mansingh hailed the appointment, saying it was "long overdue".

Indo-Asian News Service

EARLIER REPORTS:
No conflict with ambassador-at-large: Mansingh
Opposition stages walkout in Lok Sabha over Agnihotri's appointment
'Agnihotri's appointment will divide NRIs'
PM's NRI friend named ambassador-at-large in US

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