Ayodhya Ram Mandir supporter, Indian origin Donald Trump loyalist Kash Patel floated as the choice for post of CIA Director

Near the conclusion of Trump's first term, Patel was also considered for the position of deputy director of the CIA or FBI, but CIA Director Gina Haspel and Attorney General Bill Barr objected, claiming Patel lacked the required experience.

Following the dramatic win of Donald Trump and becoming the 47th President of the United States of America, name of an Indian-origin Trump loyalist, Kashyap Patel, also known as Kash Patel, is being floated for the role of Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).

After Donald Trump takes office, he is expected to announce high-ranking officials for his cabinet. One of those names expected to be announced is of Kash Patel. Patel, a former Republican House staffer who has held several high-level positions in the defense and intelligence sectors during Trump’s first term. Patel has often appeared on the campaign trail to mobilize backing for the Republican candidate. He formerly served as Chief of Staff to Acting Secretary of Defense Christopher Miller.

Lawyer by profession, Patel has his roots in Vadodara, Gujarat

According to reports, Patel was born in 1980 and has roots in Vadodara, Gujarat. He did his undergraduate studies at the University of Richmond, and received a law degree and a Certificate in International Law from University College London. Initially, he is believed to have faced challenges in setting up his law practice or securing a position at prominent law firms. This is the sole reason that he began his career as a public defender. He worked in Miami courts for nearly 9 years and handled serious cases such as murder, narcotics trafficking, and financial crimes. Eventually, Patel’s career got closely tied to Trump’s political rise.

He happened to be a part of the federal government as a terrorist prosecutor at the Department of Justice, where he supervised probes and indictments of terrorists linked to Al-Qaeda and ISIS. He also has experience working as the Justice Department’s liaison officer with the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC), cooperating on worldwide counter-terrorism activities.

Kash Patel’s support for Ram Mandir in Ayodhya

In one of his statements, highlighting US mainstream media’s biased narrative, Kash Patel said that when Ram Mandir Pran Pratishtha took place in AYodhya, and PM Modi went there, the Washington newspapers covered only last 50 years of history. Patel highlighted that the media failed to cover 500 years of history, ignoring Hindus’ long fight to reclaim the Ram Temple.

Patel stressed that there was a Hindu Temple at the site of one of the quintessential Gods in the Hindu pantheon. He said that the ancient Ram Mandir at the site was toppled and Hindus had been trying for 500 years to get it back. He said that by forgetting that part of history, the newspapers were involved in a disinformation campaign harmful to India and PM Modi’s position.

Kash Patel’s career progression

In the year 2017, Patel joined the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, which was chaired by Republican Congressman Devin Nunes, a strong Trump loyalist. Patel rapidly gained national heed for his work in the committee’s probe into alleged Russian intervention in the 2016 US presidential election. He helped produce the contentious “Nunes Memo,” which accused the FBI of abusing surveillance authorities during its investigation into the Trump campaign.

Despite strong condemnation from the US Justice Department, the document grabbed Trump’s attention and cemented Patel’s standing as a trusted person within the Trump administration.

During Trump’s first term, the 44-year-old held several high-profile national security positions. He joined the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) in February 2020, serving as Principal Deputy to Acting Director Richard Grenell. He eventually became Chief of Staff to Acting Defense Secretary Christopher Miller, assuming major control over the Department of Defense’s operations and transition procedures.

Patel has courted several controversies

It is crucial to note that, throughout his career, Patel has courted controversy a lot of times with some more experienced national security officials viewing him as erratic and overly eager to please the president. Near the conclusion of Trump’s first term, Patel was also considered for the position of deputy director of the CIA or FBI, but CIA Director Gina Haspel and Attorney General Bill Barr objected, claiming Patel lacked the required experience.

Patel has ever since continued to promote Trump’s policies while also pursuing commercial and media interests. He has written a memoir titled ‘Government Gangsters: The Deep State, the Truth, and the Battle for Our Democracy’, as well as children’s fiction that supports and promotes Trump. He also is on the board of directors for Trump Media and Technology Group, which controls the Truth Social media platform.

If Patel fails to get a Senate vote to become CIA director, the Trump administration will most likely assign him to the National Security Council.

Trump won surpassing Harris

Donald J Trump won the elections, becoming the 47th President of the United States of America with 312 Electoral Votes compared to Kamala Harris, who managed to win 226 electoral votes. Trump won approximately 50.9% of the popular vote (72,560,841) and Kamala got 47.6% (67,878,826). In a major upset for the Democrats, the US Senate has also a Republican majority now with 52 seats. The House of Representatives is yet to see final results which may take days. Currently, it is a very tight contest.