"Why Indian-American diaspora has been so silent": Shashi Tharoor raises concerns over H-1B visa hikes, 50% tariffs on Indian goods

New Delhi [India], September 23 (ANI): Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Tuesday led a significant meeting between a US Congressional delegation and India’s Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs.

He highlighted the surprising silence of the Indian-American diaspora on critical issues affecting India-US relations. During the meeting, a congresswoman shared that she hadn’t received a single call from Indian-American voters urging policy changes, prompting Tharoor to urge the diaspora to be more vocal.

The meeting addressed concerns over H-1B visa hikes, 50% tariffs on Indian goods, and US sanctions on the Chabahar Port, with some US lawmakers criticising the Trump administration’s decisions.

The five-member delegation, all Democrats (four from California), expressed strong support for India-US partnership despite recent challenges like H-1B visa restrictions and trade tariffs.

Speaking with ANI, Tharoor stressed that if Indian-Americans care about their motherland, they must actively advocate for India’s interests and pressure their political representatives.

“I do want to stress that one of the points we raised was why the Indian-American diaspora has been so silent about all of this. One of the congresswomen said that not one phone call has come to her office from any Indian-American voter asking for her to support a change of policy, and this is something that is surprising and that I think we all need to reach out to the Indian-American population saying, if you care about the relationship with your motherland, then you also have to fight for it, speak for it and make more of an effort to press your political representatives to stand up for India. But the ones who came here are already friends of India, well disposed towards India and they have spoken very warmly and positively of the relationship…,” Tharoor told ANI.

Tharoor noted that the visiting US lawmakers were already “friends of India,” praising India’s economic resilience and the contributions of its diaspora. He emphasised that American opinion, including Congress, remains committed to strengthening India-US relations.

The meeting between a delegation of US Congresspersons and the Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs was led by Tharoor at Parliament House Annexe Extension Building.

“We had a very good visit from a US Congressional delegation which consisted of 5 members of the US House of Congress who happened all to be from the Democratic Party and four of them were from California, but they had tremendous interest in India. I think the most important message that came out from them was that a lot of American opinion, including in the US Congress, is very strongly committed to the Indian relationship, the strategic partnership, that India is valued and that they remain determined to strengthen that relationship despite the recent setbacks that we are all familiar with, the H1-B visa setback, the 50% tariff setback, the sanctions on the Chabahar Port and various other things which have made life a bit difficult in the Indo-US relationship currently…,” Tharoor told ANI.

The committee also discussed India-Sri Lanka relations and future directions with Ministry of External Affairs representatives. As Chairperson of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs, Tharoor played a pivotal role in facilitating the dialogue. (ANI)

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