Vincent Xavier said that he had met Tharoor in 2015 and had interviewed him over lunch.
New Delhi:
A lone Indian flag sticking out of a sea of pro-Trump banners at the rally that led to the chaos of the US Capitol set off its own narrative amid global condemnation of the violence. The man who waved that flag, Vincent Xavier, says his intention was to show that America “is not racist as it is said to be” and embraces diversity.
The image of the tricolor on Capitol Hill sparked a fight between Congressional MP Shashi Tharoor and BJP MP Varun Gandhi on Twitter, with dozens of users sharing and reacting to the exchange.
Vincent Xavier responded to the two politicians by placing flags from other countries, which he said were also seen at the rally.
“There is nothing to be ashamed of, we are celebrating our diversity. The world needs to know that the United States is not the racist country as it presents itself. That the Republican Party is not white supremacist. If they were racists, they would not allow it to carry the flag of India. Actually, I was showing more respect, “he told NDTV.
In the bitter exchange that began with Tharoor criticizing the shaking of the Indian tricolor in what quickly became one of the lowest moments of American democracy, Gandhi pointed to a photo of the leader of Congress with Vincent Xavier, posted online by the users.
Xavier said he had met Tharoor in 2015 and interviewed him over lunch in Washington.
“I met him twice after that at Indian American events, Malayali. Tharoor is a very good speaker. I am always jealous of his English skills … I don’t know if I would consider him a great leader … we want him to take on a role. more important and rescue the Congress party in the way it is today, instead of getting into such controversies, “he said.
Xavier, who describes himself as a loyalist to outgoing President Donald Trump, is a Virginia resident and originally from Kerala. He had been a member of the President’s Export Council. He said he went to the rally because there is always “a lot of patriotic fervor” in Trump rallies and “some thugs” stormed the Capitol that day.
“I’m a Republican Party operative. I’ve been to a lot of Trump rallies. There’s a lot of patriotic fervor there, a lot of bands, music, national anthems … Some scoundrels that we believe were planted by the opposition, BLM (Black Lives Matter) people who he entered and broke into the Capitol building in a very difficult exercise … crawling up the wall like military men. They opened the door and some others in their excitement came in … Such bad patriotic demonstration. We think they weren’t really our people. ” said the 54-year-old, distancing himself from the mob that stormed the Capitol.
“It was in no way disrespectful of the flag of India,” he said, on whether he had a feeling of regret for the way events unfolded that day.
“I love India. I am proud of my ancestry. I carry my Native American ancestry. I regard this as my solemn responsibility to be a spokesperson for Native Americans in the Republican Party. I am showing that we are more inclusive, more diverse. I am showing the same fervor. than Americans from other countries. I don’t regret my decision to carry the flag. “
On the blocking of Trump by Facebook and Twitter for his posts that are considered to incite widely condemned violence, Xavier said: “You are giving a lot of credence to bad policies. When I spoke of inhaling warm water with turmeric powder to take care of Covid, they blocked me on Facebook. Whatever social media is doing is not the right thing to do, it goes against American values. “
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