NEWARK, N.J. – U.S. Senator Bob Menendez, Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today held a roundtable with Indian-American community leaders from across New Jersey to discuss his commitment to fostering the U.S.-India relationship, as well as his upcoming Congressional Delegation trip to the country. The roundtable was attended by elected officials, medical professionals, entrepreneurs, civic activists and religious leaders.

“Our relationship with India is critically important and has made considerable strides in recent years. Our trade relationship has grown, our defense relationship has grown and our people to people ties are as strong as ever,” said Sen. Menendez. “We need to continue growing this relationship, one that will extend long beyond the tenures of leadership in either country.”

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On his trip, Sen. Menendez plans to hold a series of meetings with civil society, security and government officials in the country. Sen. Menendez will celebrate Ghandi’s 150th birthday, commemorate the 2008 terrorist attack in Mumbai, and meet with clean energy partners to discuss how to combat the growing climate change crisis.

New Jersey is home to nearly 300,000 Indian-Americans, making it the third highest state with an Indian-American population, just after California and New York. Indian-Americans also make up the largest group of foreign-born residents in the state.

Attendee’s at today’s roundtable included:

  • Rahil Darbar – President-Elect of the South Asian Bar Association of New Jersey
  • Balpreet Grewal-Virk – Hackensack Meridian Health
  • Sunny Kaila – Sikh American Chamber of Commerce
  • Suchitra Kamath – President of Inspiring South Asian American Women
  • Dr. Annah Kuriakose – SKN Foundation
  • Vinay Limbachia – Represents BAPS Temples across the state
  • Chirag Mehtra – South Asian Bar Association of New Jersey
  • Assemblyman Raj Mukherji (LD-33) – Majority Whip, Represents Union City, Weehawken and parts of Jersey City
  • Rekha Nandwani – Hudson County Workforce Development Board
  • Hersh Patel – Represents the Shree Swaminarayan Temple in Secaucus
  • Indy Samra – Board member of the Sikh American Veterans Alliance (SAVA) and Co-chair of the Punjabi Chamber of Commerce
  • Roshan Shah – Partner at Scarinci Hollenbeck Attorneys at Law
  • Amol Sinha – Executive Director of ACLU New Jersey
  • Jagdish Talreja – SKN Foundation
  • Yogi Virk – Business Owner