One Wednesday morning in September 2022, a lobbyist contacted a congressional staffer in Washington, DC to arrange a meeting on behalf of their client. The client, the Hindu American Foundation, wanted to discuss human rights concerns in Pakistan and a resolution in the US House of Representatives regarding religious minorities in India. During the meeting, the client appealed to the staffer to support a ban on sustainment packages for F-16 fighter jets sold to Pakistan due to alleged persecution of the Hindu minority in that country.
The staffer was surprised by the depth of the Hindu American Foundation’s involvement in geopolitics, as they had not expected the nonprofit to be so politically active. Despite claiming to be nonpartisan, the foundation had ramped up its political activities in support of the Indian government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) since 2014.
The foundation’s lobbying efforts on Capitol Hill aimed at influencing US foreign policy related to India raised questions about whether it should register as a foreign agent under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) of 1938. Despite pushing the BJP government’s agenda, the Hindu American Foundation denied any affiliation with the Indian government or the BJP.
The foundation’s early years were focused on domestic advocacy for Hindu causes, but in 2013, there was a noticeable shift towards lobbying efforts in favor of Modi, who was the prime ministerial candidate for the BJP at the time. The Hindu American Foundation’s political activities were closely tied to the Hindu American Political Action Committee (HAPAC), with many board members overlapping between the two organizations.
HAPAC had made significant campaign contributions since 2012, with donors including HAF board members like Mihir Meghani and Shekar Reddy. These donations helped rally support for Hindu and Indian geopolitical causes, with HAF’s founders and donors actively campaigning for political candidates aligned with their interests.
Despite these ties and activities, the Hindu American Foundation maintained its stance of political agnosticism and nonpartisanship, emphasizing that there was no functional overlap between HAF and HAPAC, even though many board members were part of both organizations.