The candidate for the Virginia Republican State Central Committee says he wants to mentor the community “so they are engaged in active conversation.â€
By Raif Karerat
With Donald Trump dominating primaries across the United States, the Republican Party has taken on an overarching persona that has left an unsavory taste in the mouths of many immigrants and first generation Americans.
In an effort to rewrite the GOP’s ongoing narrative, Puneet Ahluwalia has taken it upon himself to vie for a seat on the Virginia Republican State Central Committee for the 10th Congressional District.
“With the divisiveness of the races, ongoing anti-immigration sentiment, and the targeting of minorities, I felt it was important that the true values and ideals of my Republican Party should be highlighted,” the Indian American said in a conversation with the American Bazaar.
As a 16-year veteran of the Virginia Republican Party, Ahluwalia currently serves as the First Vice Chairman of Fairfax County Republican Committee (FCRC). As the head of the FCRC’s Community Engagement Committee (CEC), he spearheads all inclusivity and grassroots efforts for various minority communities and business coalitions.
Ahluwalia, who lives in McLean, VA, with his wife, Nadia, and their three children, is a member of New World Strategies, LLC, a government relations firm, where he leads business development and growth opportunities for domestic and international companies.
As a transplant from India, who is involved in both business and state politics, his vision for the GOP involves being more engaged with Indian Americans — especially business owners.
“I feel that the Indians in the Democratic Party don’t know what Republican values really are,†the Delhi University graduate said. “Everybody immigrates to the United States for better individual success, which is the liberty of starting your own business, having less government regulation, paying fewer taxes, and putting an emphasis on education.â€
“When you look at the Democratic Party, it doesn’t have any of those. The emphasis is on larger government, higher taxes, government interference, and overreach into businesses, so that is quite contrary to what immigrants and Indians want,” he continued.
Ahluwalia understands the trepidation that many Indian Americans encounter in the face of Trump’s seemingly xenophobic rhetoric, and he intends to alleviate their misgivings by not only getting them involved in the political process but also by proving that his party amounts to more than the man who is sweeping primaries across the nation.
“That’s the reason that I’m running,” he proffered. “I want to mentor my community so they are engaged in active conversation, mitigate their fears, and have them play an integral role in mainstream politics.”
Ahluwalia went on to explain that he believes Americans of Indian origin should be far more entrenched in local and national politics, and that the lack of representation on either side of the aisle is a product of an inherent complacency.
“We’re living here as tourists. We drive nice cars, we live in big mansions, and we send our kids to school, but we don’t participate in the future of this great nation,” Ahluwalia lamented. “We have the highest per capita income; our kids want to get the best education, but what sort of contribution is made by not exercising our liberty and right to vote?”
While the Republican clarified that he is a proponent of overarching participation on either side of the bipartisan divide, he believes Indian Americans should see the GOP as the leading advocate for their most stringent ideals.
“Vote Republican, and vote in your best interest,” he declared emphatically. “That, I feel, is the best way for the [Indian American] community to look into what is important for their standards, their family, and the country as a whole.”
Despite the notion that Indian Americans are not involved enough in local and national governance, Ahluwalia is adamant that he can bring the demographic to the forefront of American politics. His campaign is the product of an innate conviction that he has the necessary tools to not only convince various ethnicities to cast their ballot in favor of a Republican candidate, but to include them in the amorphous sphere of American policymaking.
“I feel very strongly that I can organize my community and folks from other nations because I understand [them]; I come from India and I have experience as a successful businessman, so I know how to deal with people from various backgrounds,” he said.
If elected to the Virginia Republican State Central Committee, he has pledged to provide an impetus for outreach efforts throughout his congressional district. However, only time will tell whether Ahluwalia will be given the opportunity to mastermind the diversification of the Grand Old Party.