Verma Would Make An Excellent US Envoy To India: Congressmen

Noting that the relationship between the two countries is of critical importance, Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard said the U.S. needs an Ambassador who understands India, and who can grow the friendship and advance their shared interests.

"I'd like to congratulate Mr Verma on his nomination to fill this role and represent our nation to the people of India. His vast experience in public service will serve him well.

"I wish him the best as he moves forward through the confirmation process, and encourage the Senate to move forward quickly to send him to India as our U.S. Ambassador," said Gabbard, the first ever Hindu lawmaker in the Congress.

Eminent Indian-American attorney Ravi Batra said Obama's nomination of Verma as U.S. Ambassador to India is an act of historic joy, and proof that Indian-Americans are trusted to protect vital American interests abroad in an un-conflicted manner.

"To paraphrase Neil Armstrong, one small step for Ambassador Verma, and a giant leap for bilateral intimate ties between United States and India."

"It seems United States is paying a handsome royalty for the use of Indian Tea at the 1773 Boston Tea Party that started the American Revolution," Batra said. Verma's parents originally from Punjab moved to the US from 1960s. He served as a top foreign policy and national security adviser to Obama's re-election campaign in 2012 and served on his transition team in 2008.

Earlier in his career, Verma was a Field Representative for the National Democratic Institute in Eastern Europe and worked in the House of Representatives for Congressman John P Murtha.

He served on the Commission on the Prevention of Weapons of Mass Destruction Proliferation and Terrorism in 2008 and has been a member of the Secretary of State's Foreign Affairs Policy Board.

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