When Tulsi Gabbard, the new appointee of Donald Trump, criticized the Pakistan Army for its atrocities against Hindus in Bangladesh

President-elect Donald Trump appointed former Democratic representative Tulsi Gabbard as the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) in his administration. Gabbard, the first Hindu Congresswoman in the United States, has consistently condemned the atrocities against Hindus and other minorities in Pakistan and Bangladesh. Raised in a family that embraced Hinduism, Gabbard’s mother, born in the U.S., introduced her children to the faith. Gabbard, whose first name, Tulsi, is a sacred plant in Hinduism, is a lifelong vegetarian and took her oath to enter Congress on the Bhagavad Gita. 

In 2021, Gabbard introduced a resolution in the U.S. Congress calling for the protection of Hindu minorities in Bangladesh, following repeated atrocities. She also criticized the Pakistani military for its role in the 1971 violence against Bengali Hindus. 

In her resolution, Gabbard highlighted how over 50 years ago, the Pakistani military killed, tortured, and displaced thousands of Bengali Hindus in Bangladesh, with at least 2-3 million people reportedly killed during the targeted attacks. After being elected co-chair of the India Caucus in the U.S. House of Representatives in 2017, Gabbard also spoke out about Pakistan’s continued use of its territory by terrorists operating in India, Afghanistan, and other countries.