Obama appoints Indian American to his faith based council

WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama on Monday appointed Indian American Anju Bhargava as the member of a faith-based advisory council of the White House.

The council is part of the White House Office of Faith Based and Neighborhood Partnerships and includes religious and secular leaders and scholars from different backgrounds as its members.

Bhargava is the president of the New Jersey-based Asian Indian Women of America. She is possibly the only Indian American women priest in the United States, performing poojas, marriages and other rituals to the community members.

Bhargava is the second Indian American appointed to the council. Eboo S Patel, founder and executive director of Interfaith Youth Core in Chicago, was earlier appointed as a council member. Both the appointment is for one year.

The White House Office for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships acts as a resource for nonprofits and community organizations, both secular and faith based, looking for ways to make a bigger impact in their communities, learn their obligations under the law, cut through red tape, and make the most of what the federal government has to offer.