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29-07-2024
Bureau Report + Agencies
NEW DELHI/ CHENNAI: The Indian links of some US presidential election contenders probably mean little additional benefit for ties, experts said, against the backdrop of bipartisan support for closer relations with the South Asian nation to counter an assertive China.
Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris and Usha Chilukuri Vance, the wife of Republican Donald Trump’s running-mate, have rarely visited the birthplace of one or both of their parents, although Indians take pride in their success.
“Either way, from India’s perspective, whether it is Republican or Democrat, that relationship enjoys bipartisan support and should not be affected,” said Harsh Vardhan Shringla, a former Indian ambassador to the United States.
“It can only benefit,” he said of the India links, adding, “(It) cannot be affected adversely.”
Since ties with New Delhi are viewed favorably by both parties in Washington, there will be little impact on relations, regardless of which party wins, or the candidate’s Indian roots, an Indian government official said on condition of anonymity.
Both President Joe Biden and Trump, his predecessor in office, sought to woo India, not just to challenge China in the region, but also to wean New Delhi from a traditional dependence on Russian weapons.
Both Harris and Usha Vance, the wife of Republican vice presidential candidate, J.D. Vance have links to southern India. Vance belongs to a family of renowned academics.
Harris, who has garnered the backing of enough delegates to secure the Democratic nomination, is viewed as role model in her mother’s ancestral village of Thulasendrapuram.
She has “proven how young women, previously confined to their homes, can reach such heights, becoming a public figure in the world’s No. 1 country,” said J Sudhakar, a resident of the village where Harris’ maternal grandfather was born.
“How big an achievement is that?”
Harris, who visited the village as a five-year-old, has recalled walks with her grandfather on the beach of the city of Chennai where the family later lived, about 320 km (200 miles) from the village of roughly 2,000 people but she has not been back since becoming US vice president.
“Residents expected a visit, a statement or at least a mention of the village, but that didn’t happen,” said shopkeeper G. Manikandan but “we will invite her when she wins and organize a grand celebration and welcome for her,” he added.
Usha Chilukuri Vance, the wife of Donald Trump’s vice presidential running mate, has a great-aunt in southern India, aged 96, celebrated in local media as the country’s oldest active professor.
Academic achievement marks the family of US-born Vance, notably Shanthamma Chilukuri, who still travels 60 km (40 miles) most weekdays to university to teach physics.
“Most of our family is academically strong and education has been a top priority,” Chilukuri told media.
Usha Vance, 38, made her debut on the US national political stage on Wednesday when she introduced her husband, US Senator J.D. Vance of Ohio, at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee.
“I got to know about Usha’s husband being named as a vice president candidate and of course we are happy as a family,” Chilukuri told media.
In his memoir “Hillbilly Elegy”, Vance calls his wife a “super-smart daughter of Indian immigrants” whom he met at Yale Law School.
