HOUSTON • Tens of thousands of Indian Americans packed into a Houston stadium yesterday for a rally with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, joined by US President Donald Trump, in a rare mass show of support for a foreign leader on US soil.
The event gave Mr Modi, a nationalist facing international criticism over a recent crackdown in disputed Kashmir, a chance to energise his relationship with Indian Americans who are active political supporters.
Mr Trump, meanwhile, faced a largely foreign-born audience that might not prove receptive to his typical strident anti-immigrant messages.
Jubilant supporters dressed in everything from ornate saris to simple dhotis and even a few cowboy hats waved American and Indian flags, chanted "Modi! Modi!" and munched on concession-stand snacks that included Indian staples of samosas and naan breads - along with nachos.
"Today we celebrate our community and its importance in Houston and all America," said Mr Ketan Inamdar, who works in the administration of Houston's Democratic Mayor Sylvester Turner, and painted a US flag on his right cheek and an Indian one on the left.
"Mr Trump is very welcome here today. This event is to build harmony and love," he said, standing just in front of the dais where Mr Trump and Mr Modi would speak. "Race, religion and political parties don't matter today," he added.
Houston is a rare Democratic stronghold in Republican-dominated Texas and serves as the economic anchor of a state that will be critical to Mr Trump's 2020 re-election bid.
Polls show tepid support by Indian American voters, some 75 per cent of whom voted for his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton in 2016.
It was not the first time Mr Modi, who heads the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party, has addressed a large crowd in the United States, which is home to about four million Indian Americans, including about 300,000 in Houston and nearby Dallas, according to a Pew Research Centre analysis of US Census data.
Some 19,000 people turned out for a similar event in New York in 2014, and Indian American volunteers living in US suburbs helped run a telephone blitz of voters in India in the run-up to his May re-election campaign.
Mr Modi's visit to Houston comes ahead of this week's United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York and amid a particularly tense time on the subcontinent.
The Indian leader further strained long-simmering relations with Pakistan last month by revoking the partial autonomy enjoyed by Muslim-majority Kashmir, which both nuclear-armed nations claim. Mr Modi's move has been met by international criticism.
Pakistan has condemned the crackdown and warned it would drive more of the world's Muslims into extremism.
Members of India's religious minority Sikh and Muslim groups planned noisy gatherings yesterday near the stadium to protest against Mr Modi's Kashmir policy.
The US and India are racing to negotiate a limited trade deal that Mr Trump and Mr Modi can sign at the UNGA, people familiar with the talks said yesterday.
A deal between the world's most populous democracies would be a welcome victory for Mr Trump, whose administration has made little headway in negotiating an end to its prolonged trade war with China.
The US-India relationship on trade and tariffs is currently rocky, though Mr Trump and Mr Modi have strong personal ties.
But Professor Devesh Kapur, director of Asia Programmes at Johns Hopkins University, who has written a book on Indian Americans, said that while the rally would certainly have symbolic value for both leaders, "it's unlikely by itself to impact thorny trade issues".
Prof Kapur also forecast little improvement for Mr Trump's standing with Indian Americans. "Appearing with PM Modi might mildly help but certainly not reverse the community's overall pro-Democrat leanings."
REUTERS
