1 month ago
Last Updated:February 22, 2025, 14:16 IST
Kash Patel was sworn in as the 9th FBI Director under the Trump administration. He was born in New York to Gujarati immigrant parents from East Africa and pursued a career in law.
Kash Patel speaking after taking oath as the 9th FBI Director of the United States. (Reuters)
Indian-American Kash Patel was sworn in as the new Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) by US Attorney General Pam Bondi and called it the “greatest honour" of his life.
Taking oath on the Bhagavad Gita in the Indian Treaty Room in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on Friday, Patel, a fierce Trump loyalist who previously called for retribution against the President’s critics, promised to defend Americans from threats while speaking about his cultural heritage.
He was sworn in after the Republican-controlled US Senate confirmed him by a 51-49 vote the day before. Two moderate Republicans, Senators Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, joined all Democrats in opposing Patel.
ALSO READ: ‘Living The American Dream’: New FBI Director Kash Patel Proudly Exhibits His Indian Origins
Who Is Kash Patel?
Kashyap Pramod Patel, 44, was born in New York on February 25, 1980, to Gujarati immigrant parents from East Africa and pursued a career in law. In the first Trump administration, he held key positions at the Office of the Director of Intelligence and the Defence Department and has called for a “comprehensive housecleaning" of the Justice Department and the FBI.
Patel previously worked as a federal defender and a counterterrorism prosecutor for the Justice Department. He came to Trump’s attention during his first term. As a staff member on the House Intelligence Committee, he co-wrote a memo criticising the FBI’s investigation into possible links between Russia and Trump’s 2016 election campaign.
Patel then joined the Trump administration, working on counterterrorism for the Security Council and serving as chief of staff to the defence secretary.
Kash Patel’s Roots To Gujarat
Patel traces his roots to Bhadran village in Gujarat’s Anand district, from where his family migrated to Uganda 70 to 80 years ago, his community members told the news agency PTI on Friday.
Leaders of the Patidar community said all close family members of Patel are settled in foreign countries. They sold their ancestral houses in Bhadran once they shifted to Africa. Chh Gam Patidar Mandal, an organisation of the community in Anand, reportedly maintained the `vanshavali’ (family tree) of its members, which included Kash Patel’s father Pramod and his brothers and grandfather.
However, Kash Patel’s name was yet to be added to the family tree, according to Anand District BJP president Rajesh Patel, but the entry of 18 generations of his family has been recorded.
“As per our records, the family used to live in Moti Khadki area of Bhadran village and they migrated to Uganda some 70 to 80 years ago. The family sold their ancestral house and land and all of his relatives are settled in foreign countries, especially in the USA," Rajesh Patel told PTI.
“Now, when a family member of Kash comes back to India we will seek their permission to record their next generation’s names, including his own name, in the vanshavali," he added. “We have not met Kash Patel as the family has not visited Anand in recent years. But many in our community know them as Patidar is a close-knit community."
‘A Devotee Of Lord Shiva’
Kash Patel’s 69-year-old maternal uncle, who chose to remain anonymous, told The Indian Express that he was a first-generation “politician" with no prior background in politics and his parents – Anjana and Pramod – own an apartment in Vadodara which they visit regularly.
According to the uncle, Kash visits India regularly. “Kashyap is a devotee of Shiv, Hanuman and Ganesh. At his apartment in Washington DC, he has a separate temple space dedicated to the gods…He is known as ‘Kash’ across the world but for the family he is Kashyap," he said.
While Kashyap’s family had migrated to the US after fleeing from Uganda during the Idi Amin coup in 1971, his uncle stated that his parents married after Pramod had settled in the US.
Kash Patel’s Family Briefly Returned To India Before Going To US
According to Rajesh Patel, the family had briefly returned to India after Indians were expelled in 1972 by then-dictator Idi Amin who seized power in a military coup in 1971.
“Those Indians who were expelled from Uganda had come to India for a brief stay as they had applied for asylum in the UK, US or Canada. Kash Patel’s family had also come here for a brief stopover and then moved to Canada once their applications were accepted," he said.
From Canada, the family migrated to the United States and Kash Patel was born in New York, where he earned his law degree. “We are Gujarati," he had told PTI in an earlier interview in the United States.
Location :Washington D.C., United States of America (USA)
First Published:February 22, 2025, 08:16 IST
News world 'Kash Patel A Devotee of Lord Shiva': Tracing New FBI Chief's Gujarati Roots, Record Of Kin's 18 Generations
