'Baseless And Silly Reports'

There had been quite a buzz about Sonal Shah, who was appointed to serve on US President-elect Barack Obama's official 15-member transition board, comprising individuals with significant private and public sector experience who will offer their expertise in their respective fields,chaired by John Podesta, former President Clinton's chief of staff. 40-year-old Sonal Shah,who is director for Global Development at google.org, came under public scrutinythat began with an article in Counterpunch,in which it was suggested that she had strong connections to theVHP and the RSS.  This is the text of the statement issued byher. Interestingly, it does not say anything specifically about her membership of VHP-A, while the latter organisation was on record to say that Sonal Shah was a member of the organisation till recently.

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As an Indian-American who has lived in this country since the age of four, serving on the Obama-Biden transition team is a unique privilege for me. A presidential transition is always a time of excitement and, in some cases, of rumors and unfounded gossip. I'd like to set to rest a few baseless and silly reports that have been circulating on the Internet.

First, my personal politics have nothing in common with the views espoused by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), or any such organization. I've never been involved in Indian politics, and never intend to do so.

Second, I've always condemned any politics of division, of ethnic or religious hatred, of violence and intimidation as a political tool. Some factually inaccurate internet rumors have attempted to link me to Hindu Nationalist groups through a variety of tenuous connections: Relief work I'm proud to have helped coordinate following the Gujarati earthquake of 2001, or cultural and religious affiliations of some of my family members, or apolitical humanitarian work I've been privileged to do as a founder of the NGO Indicorps and as the Director of Global Development forGoogle.org.

Finally, I do not subscribe to the views of such Hindu nationalist groups, and never have. Ridiculous tactics of guilt by association have been decisively repudiated by the American people. I am delighted with what the victory on November 4 says about my country, and about our place in the world. I look forward to serving our President-elect in this time of transition."