US Congressman Ro Khanna has distanced himself from an event in Washington DC that featured Dattatreya Hosabale, the general secretary of RSS. Khanna clarified that he was unaware of the list of participants.
US Congressman Ro Khanna has distanced himself from an event in Washington DC that featured Dattatreya Hosabale, the general secretary of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). The event was organised by the Hudson Institute last week.
Khanna clarified that he had no direct involvement in the event and was unaware of the list of participants.
His response came after a social media post from the Indian-American Muslim Council criticised Khanna’s participation. In his reply, Khanna said that he had only provided a short recorded video message at the request of the organisers.
I did not appear. Hudson, a think tank, asked for a 1 minute video which we provided. Have no idea on their guest list and certainly do not support RSS in anyway.
— Ro Khanna (@RoKhanna) April 24, 2026
Notably the post by Indian-American Muslim Council was soon deleted after users flagged that the account is being operated from neither India nor America, but Türkiye.
A Muslim Brotherhood front organisation being dictated from Turkey is the reason why Hindu-American Rohit Khanna will not support fair dialogue between democracies. Got it!
IAMC even deleted the tweet btw after getting exposed 🙃 https://t.co/cmajrQhBJn pic.twitter.com/beMiYMG9i9
— Monica Verma (@TrulyMonica) April 25, 2026
“I did not appear. Hudson, a think tank, asked for a one-minute video which we provided. I have no idea about their guest list and certainly do not support RSS in any way,” Khanna said.
The event, called the New India Conference, included several prominent figures. Among them were BJP foreign affairs in-charge Vijay Chauthaiwale and former national general secretary Ram Madhav. It also saw participation from US officials, including deputy assistant secretary of state for South Asia Bethany Morrison.
Khanna, who is seen as a possible contender in the 2028 US presidential race, has often tried to portray himself as a progressive leader by denouncing what he say ‘Hindutva’ politics.
In 2019, he said it was the responsibility of American politicians of Hindu faith to support pluralism and equal rights for all communities, including Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Buddhists and Christians.
At the time, he also questioned Tulsi Gabbard over her reported links with groups associated with Hindutva politics. His remarks led to protests from some Indian-American groups, who accused him of promoting “Hinduphobia.”
Khanna defended his position, saying he would not give in to pressure from what he described as a “special interest lobby.” He also said that he had no tolerance for right-wing nationalist groups aligned with US President Donald Trump.
Meanwhile, Hosabale said that his visit to the United States — his first since taking up the current role — was aimed at engaging with opinion-makers and sharing information about the organisation’s activities.
First Published:
April 27, 2026, 15:57 IST
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