Detroit: The World Hindu Council of America (VHPA) elected its new executive teams during its three days meet in Detroit in the second week of December.
Abhaya Asthana from the Boston Chapter (and the current General Secretary) was elected the President, and Sanjay Mehta, from Pittsburgh, the current Joint General Secretary, was elected the New General Secretary. The new office members of the Governing Council were: Bibek Das, Parag More, Naresh Chand, Anit Gupta, Basant Tariyal, Kamlesh Patel, Ajay Jain, Kaushik Mitra, Ravindra Shukla, Ravi Tetambe, Prem Gargand Anju Preet.
The event organized by the Detroit chapter of VHPA team led by Arjun Soorya, was kicked off with a welcome address by the local VHPA leaders Yash Lakra and Arjun Soorya followed by Ekatmata Mantra and Bhavgeet. The delegates analyzed activities of the past year, and charted out their strategic and operational initiatives for the coming years. It was resolved to continue its efforts to advocate the cause of Hindus in the United States and around the world and promote the Hindu ethos.
The evening ended with a lively panel discussion focusing on the biases in perception and communication that the Hindu community faces. The morning’s program covered sessions on different topics, important to the three million strong Hindu community in the US.
Among them were presentation on the Hindu Mandir Executive Conference (HMEC), a unique project of VHPA that brings together more than 700 Hindu temples and organizations across America and the HAVAN project, a unique effort at care giving and community support for and by the elderly community. The “relations and outreach” team detailed out the need for public awareness and outreach work in support of the Hindu community around the world. Specifically, the continued suppression of the Hindus in Pakistan, Bangladesh and Malaysia found mention in the discussions.
Several sessions focused on VHPA’s community service (SEVA) projects. Support a child (SAC), Sevapedia, and the relief efforts to support the Bhutanese Hindu community which has been exiled from their native country due to continuing religious persecution found specific mention. The evening saw an enthralling display of Odishi, a thousand year old dance form that originated in Hindu temples of Odisha (India), followed by a community dinner with the Hindu community of Detroit.
At the end of the event, the Council passed the following resolutions
1. VHPA condemns the terror attack in Nairobi, Kenya by Islamic radicals 2) VHPA condemns the relentless religious persecution of Hindus in Bangladesh. 3) It took a strong stand against communal violence (PCTV – Prevention of Communal Violence Bill) being brought in India by the current UPA government, 4). VHPA applauds the fact that Diwali being celebrated as a mainstream festival in USA and congratulates the White House for celebrating it this year.
The Governing Council decided to Increase outreach efforts through television and print media, promote Seva initiatives like the Sevanet (Sevapedia), Support a Child (SAC) and Havan Projects and work on the Bhutanese refugee center. It decided to promote resources and support for the Hindu minority communities around the world and support the World Hindu Congress to be held Nov 2014 in India.
VHPA is of one of the oldest umbrella Hindu organizations in North America. The annual governing Council meeting is a window into the growing role of the Hindu community in the United States as a harbinger of sustainable social and economic change. As the barriers of ethnicity and knowledge break down, organizations like VHPA find an increasing role in framing the discourse on thought-leadership and the narrative of ‘universal brotherhood’ in the United States.
Ashok Jain
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