The Indian Panorama

Tag: VP Harris

  • US President Biden, VP Harris greet Jain community on Mahavir Jayanti

    US President Biden, VP Harris greet Jain community on Mahavir Jayanti

    WASHINGTON, D.C. (TIP): US President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris have extended their greetings of Mahavir Jayanti to the Jain community across the world and encouraged people to strive for peace and harmony. “(First Lady) Jill (Biden) and I wish a happy and prosperous Mahavir Jayanti to all those observing. Today, we recognize the values of Mahavir Swami and strive to live with peace, truth, and harmony,” Biden tweeted on Tuesday. Vice President Harris also sent her greetings on the occasion.

    “On Mahavir Jayanti, Doug and I join Jains around the world in celebrating the birth of Mahavir Swami, who taught that all living beings are equal. Today, let us recommit to upholding these universal values of respect and non-violence,” Harris tweeted. The greetings from the US president and the vice president were welcomed by an Indian American community leader.

    “We members of the Jain community thank President Biden and Vice President Harris for sending greetings on the occasion of Mahavir Jayanti, which no other president has done in the last,” said community leader Ajay Jain Bhutoria. “On this day, let us also take a pledge to work towards creating a more peaceful and harmonious world by following the path of Ahimsa, which was the core principle of Lord Mahavir’s teachings,” he said.

    Let us strive to create a society where there is no violence, discrimination, or hatred, and where everyone is treated with equal dignity and respect, Bhutoria said in a statement.

    “As we celebrate the birth of Lord Mahavir, let us also take a moment to reflect on his life and teachings, and to seek inspiration from his journey towards enlightenment. May this day bring us closer to our true selves and help us lead a life of purpose, compassion, and righteousness,” Bhutoria said.

  • FIACONA thanks President Biden and VP Harris for advising Modi on the need for democratic values

    FIACONA thanks President Biden and VP Harris for advising Modi on the need for democratic values

    WASHINGTON DC (TIP):  The Federation of Indian American Christian Organizations (FIACONA) thanks Vice President Harris for telling Prime Minister Modi, “I know from personal experience and from my family, of the commitment of the Indian people to democracy and to freedom, and to the work that may be done and can be done, to imagine and then actually achieve our vision for democratic principles and institutions”.

    While we greatly applaud the Vice President’s powerful testimony and her heartfelt remarks, we also feel that Mr. Modi may not have understood the gravity of what she was trying to convey to him.

    It is not the first time that Mr. Modi and his team have completely missed the point of suggestions coming from American leaders, including the then Vice-President Biden and President Obama on past occasions.

    Hence, we ask that President Biden and Vice President Harris be more direct and explicit in expressing that India should not and could not afford to go down the path of religious nationalism at the expense of pluralist democratic principles that  valuesChristian and other religious segments of the population.

    Should Modi and his party choose to continue down this path of religious nationalism despite warnings from leaders of the free world, there is no reason to assume that India would end up any better than Pakistan, Sri Lanka, or Myanmar in that region, thus jeopardizing the stability and commerce in the Indo-Pacific region.