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At 38 years old, Vivek Ramaswamy stands out among his fellow Republican presidential candidates for his age alone. The self-made billionaire has further set himself apart by saying he would ban social media for children<\/a>, proposing to raise the voting age to 25<\/a>, and espousing controversial views on 9\/11<\/a>. But when running in a party with a strong evangelical Christian wing, perhaps his most unique characteristic is his Hindu faith, which Ramaswamy has proudly discussed.<\/p>\n \u201cAm I religious? Yes, I am. I am Hindu. I am not Christian. And we are a nation founded on Judeo-Christian values,\u201d he said in an interview<\/a> with NewsNation that aired last week. \u201cBut here is what I can say with confidence: I share those same values in common. I believe I live by those values more so than many self-proclaimed Christian politicians.\u201d<\/p>\n White evangelical leaders who are considering other GOP candidates than former President Donald Trump are divided on whether a leader whose faith doesn\u2019t stem from Judeo-Christian traditions can effectively lead a nation they believe is rooted in these principles. But in interviews with CT, Indian American Christians expressed apprehension about a leader in the White House who admired Narendra Modi and would further give radical Hinduism a foothold in the United States.<\/p>\n In March, Ramaswamy appeared on<\/a> CBN where he compared the current state of America to the Israelites wandering in the wilderness. David Brody, who conducted the interview<\/a>, told The New York Times <\/em>last month, \u201cThe lazy narrative that he\u2019s Hindu so he can\u2019t appeal to evangelicals, I don\u2019t buy it at all.\u201d<\/p>\n Ramaswamy, who grew up in Cincinnati, frequently points out that he is a product of Catholic schools and has credited<\/a> his political ideology to the influence of a conservative Christian piano teacher.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve probably read the Bible more closely than many Christians that I know, and I can tell you deeply that we share that same value set. And for a guy who is not running for pastor in chief but commander in chief, that\u2019s really what matters,\u201d he said on NewsNation.<\/p>\n Nevertheless, the first statement under a part of Ramawamy\u2019s campaign website labeled \u201cTruth\u201d declares<\/a>, \u201cGod is real.\u201d<\/p>\n Ramaswamy\u2019s second point, \u201cThere are two genders,\u201d nods to the candidate\u2019s strategy to build trust with voters through culture war grievances. Author of Woke, Inc.: Inside Corporate America’s Social Justice Scam<\/em>, Ramaswamy asserted to NewsNation<\/a> that the real divide in the US on the front of religion is not between those who are members of traditional religions but between them and adherents of what he calls new religions like \u201cwokeism, transgenderism, climatism, COVIDism.\u201d<\/p>\n Further elaborating on his viewpoint, Ramaswamy expressed his unwavering commitment to safeguarding religious freedom.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m an ardent defender of religious liberty,\u201d he recently told<\/a> the Associated Press. \u201dI will be an even more vocal and unapologetic defender of it precisely because no one is going to accuse me of being a Christian nationalist.\u201d<\/p>\n But some worry that he may be too close with Hindu nationalists.<\/p>\n A Tamil Brahmin, Ramaswamy grew up speaking Tamil<\/a>, visiting Hindu temples, and performing Hindu rituals at home. (Tamil Brahmins are a diverse group of Tamil-speaking Hindu Brahmins, situated at the apex of the caste hierarchy, and are often associated with conservative traditions, and cultural and intellectual privilege.) He and his wife, Apoorva Ramaswamy, are raising their two young sons in the faith.<\/p>\n For Indian American Christians, Ramaswamy\u2019s faith practices don\u2019t present a problem. But they\u2019ve worried about his open admiration<\/a> for Modi, who has been accused of compromising democracy<\/a>, Hinduizing the country<\/a>, and ignoring religious violence against minorities<\/a>.<\/p>\n In the wake of the recent attacks on Christians in Manipur,<\/a> which have killed more than 100 people, Ramaswamy praised Modi as \u201can outstanding leader of India.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cModi has been building on that experience [of free-market capitalism] in India, lifting people up from poverty,\u201d Ramaswamy said in a July interview<\/a>. \u201cRegardless of their background, regardless of identity politics, India has prospered economically. GDP growth is up. I think that\u2019s the ultimate metric of a truly successful unifying leader.\u201d<\/p>\n Ramaswamy\u2019s presidential candidacy \u201cseems to be a part of a deeper Hindutva agenda,\u201d says Jai Prakash Masih, a leader at Asian Mennonite Community Church, Lombard, Illinois. (Hindutva is an ideology advocating hegemony of Hindus and Hinduism within India.)<\/p>\n And the average American voter\u2019s ignorance about the nuances of Hinduism and Hindutva work to Ramaswamy\u2019s advantage, says Sam Beera, an IT professional from Boston.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t think the average white conservative Christian knows much about Hinduism or Hindutva, other than yoga, elephants, or Modi. That is a big asset for Ramaswamy,\u201d said Beera. \u201cThere is an alarming lack of knowledge on the clear and present danger of Hindutva, which is an ideology modeled on Nazism.\u201d<\/p>\n The political objectives of Hindu nationalists, says Beera, include advocating for Akhand Bharat, a movement that calls for an \u201cunbroken India\u201d\u2014a political unification<\/a> of Pakistan, Bangladesh, Tibet, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, and the Maldives\u2014and endorsing Hindu political candidates globally while simultaneously marginalizing minority groups within India.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat percentage of US conservative Christians are aware of the above? Hardly a pittance if at all,\u201d said Beera.<\/p>\n Opposition research written reportedly<\/a> by Ramaswamy\u2019s GOP opponent and Florida governor Ron DeSantis\u2019s campaign tried to conflate his Hindu upbringing and his visits to India as a child with condoning the caste system, seemingly justifying Beera\u2019s concerns.<\/p>\n Currently, nearly five million people<\/a> of Indian descent live in the US. According to a 2014 Pew report<\/a>, Hindus constitute just around 51 percent of the diaspora population, compared with 18 percent identifying as Christians. Up until this point, the most visible Indian Christians have been Republicans Bobby Jindal and Nikki Haley (a convert from Sikhism). Both previous governors, Jindal ran for president in 2016, and Haley announced her own bid several months ago.<\/p>\n Many Indians who arrived in America after the Immigration Act of 1965 formed Hindu groups and associations that paved the way for many from these communities to later run for elected office, says Robert William, who grew up in Chennai, India, and previously served as a Republican in elected office in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Given the perceived wealth of this community, \u201cone could argue that a conservative Hindu POTUS would not be able to ignore the powerful and growing influence of Hinduism in the US.\u201d<\/p>\n Numerous Hindu Americans, predominantly Democrats, already serve as state and federal legislators, and increasingly their connections to Hindu groups overseas have been questioned<\/a>. Two of these politicians, Raja Krishnamoorthi and Ro Khanna, came to Ramaswamy\u2019s defense<\/a> after his faith was targeted<\/a> by a pastor from Nebraska. Krishnamoorthi has been called out<\/a> in the past for his association with Hindu nationalist groups.<\/p>\n \u201cVivek Ramasamy has surprised many people in the past week by slowly moving up in the opinion polls,\u201d said John Prabhudoss, at the Federation of Indian American Christian Organizations of North America. \u201cBut what we are concerned about is his association with radical Hindu groups that are aligned with Hindu extremism.\u201d<\/p>\n Ramaswamy has in the past delivered the keynote<\/a> for fundraisers for political advocacy groups linked to the US chapter of Vishwa Hindu Parishad of America (VHPA or World Hindu Council of America), notes<\/a> Pieter Fredrich, an American who advocates for persecuted Christians in India. VHPA is the US wing of the VHP (World Council of Hindus), which the CIA classified<\/a> as a \u201cmilitant religious organization\u201d in 2018.<\/p>\n \u201cRather than trying to court Christian voters by appealing to similarities between their faith and Hinduism, perhaps Ramaswamy should instead take up the cause of Indian Christians who are being persecuted by the Modi regime he praises,\u201d said Fredrich.<\/p>\n William, the elected official, is skeptical that Ramaswamy\u2019s voice could do much.<\/p>\n \u201cIt would be a fallacy to think that a person such as Vivek Ramaswamy would be able to influence someone like Prime Minister Modi because they are both of the Hindu faith,\u201d he said. \u201cAny such attempts would be labeled by India as interference in India\u2019s internal matters and dismissed. But such a candidate will certainly catch the attention of US groups and trigger them to open their pocketbooks and galvanize them to rally behind such a candidate aspiring for political office in the US.\u201d<\/p>\n Ramaswamy\u2019s rise could further encourage radical Hindu groups to \u201cincrease their visibility and influence in the US to counter the influence of the evangelical Christian voters in the US,\u201d said William.<\/p>\n But \u201cVivek Ramaswamy\u2019s rise in politics will be stopped in its tracks if he attempts to focus on his Hindu religion and beliefs, because the reality is that the office of president in the US still remains out of reach for anyone other than for a mainline Christian candidate.\u201d<\/p>\n\u201cGod is real\u201d<\/h5>\n
A more concerning agenda?<\/h5>\n