Tuesday, July 7, 2026
ADVT 
International

Indian-American Ajit Pai May Head U.S. Communication Commission

Darpan News Desk IANS, 18 Jan, 2017 11:41 AM
    Ajit Pai, a commissioner in the US communications regulatory agency, has met President-elect Donald Trump amid speculation that he could head the body that deals with cellphone spectrum and broadcasting.
     
    Trump's spokesperson Sean Spicer said on Tuesday that the meeting with Pai, who is the Republican nominee on the Federal Communication Commission (FCC), took place on Monday.
     
    Currently the FCC is headed by Tom Wheeler, a nominee of the Democratic Party, and a change in leadership is due with the election of Trump.
     
    The position of FCC chairman has to be approved by the Senate.
     
    The FCC is the federal authority regulating radio, television, phone, cellphone spectrum and services, internet and satellite and cable.
     
    Pai, whose parents are doctors who immigrated from India, is a lawyer and has served with the government, Congress and the private sector.
     
    A free enterprise advocate in the Republican mould, he has been a critic of the functioning of the FCC and has clashed with its leadership. 
     
    Recently, he took issue with an FCC report that questioned the legality of offerings that are used by people to access online music, videos, and other content free of charge.
     
     
    Trump has nominated two Indian-Americans to high-level positions: Nikki Haley as the Cabinet-level Ambassador to the United Nations, and Seema Verma as the head of the agency for government health insurance programmes.
     
    In addition, Trump has appointed Raj Shah as his deputy assistant and research director on the White House staff.
     
    Another Indian American, Balaji Srinivasan, met Trump last week and Spicer said that he was under consideration for a role at the the Federal Drug Administration (FDA).
     
    Srinivasan is a technology entrepreneur who has founded a biotech company and has been critical of the links between large pharmaceutical companies and the FDA and the agency's reach that he asserted stifles tech innovations.
     
    He currently heads a start-up that deals with bitcoin, the internet-based currency.

    MORE International ARTICLES

    Do Not Blow It Up, Go Out And Vote: Donald Trump To Supporters

    Do Not Blow It Up, Go Out And Vote: Donald Trump To Supporters
    "Give us two more days, I think we are going to be anywhere. The change that you have been waiting for all your life will come in six days," he said.

    Do Not Blow It Up, Go Out And Vote: Donald Trump To Supporters

    Woman's Eyes Gouged Out, Limb Cut Off By Her Brothers In Pakistan

    Woman's Eyes Gouged Out, Limb Cut Off By Her Brothers In Pakistan
    A woman's eyes were gouged out and her limb cut off by her brothers in Pakistan's Punjab province after they suspected her of kidnapping one of their daughters.

    Woman's Eyes Gouged Out, Limb Cut Off By Her Brothers In Pakistan

    Pakistan Likely To Expel Five Indian Diplomats For 'Spying'

    Pakistan Likely To Expel Five Indian Diplomats For 'Spying'
    Adding to the already bitter bilateral ties, five Indian diplomats in Pakistan are likely to be expelled for allegedly being part of a spy ring, media reports citing sources said on Wednesday.

    Pakistan Likely To Expel Five Indian Diplomats For 'Spying'

    Racism May Be Motive For Death Of Indian Bus Driver Manmeet Alisher’s In Australia: Family

    Racism May Be Motive For Death Of Indian Bus Driver Manmeet Alisher’s In Australia: Family
    Minister Sushma Swaraj in a tweet said that she would raise the issue at the highest level in the Australian government. She also expressed grief over the death.

    Racism May Be Motive For Death Of Indian Bus Driver Manmeet Alisher’s In Australia: Family

    WATCH: Diwali Celebrations Galore At UN, Diya Lit For First Time

    WATCH: Diwali Celebrations Galore At UN, Diya Lit For First Time
    UN General Assembly President Peter Thomson lit the traditional lamp at a ceremony here yesterday to celebrate Diwali at the UN Secretariat.

    WATCH: Diwali Celebrations Galore At UN, Diya Lit For First Time

    US Warns Citizens Of Increased ISIS Threat At Popular Spots In India

    US Warns Citizens Of Increased ISIS Threat At Popular Spots In India
    The United States today asked its citizens in India to keep high level of vigilance citing reports indicating that terror group ISIS desires to attack "targets" in India.  

    US Warns Citizens Of Increased ISIS Threat At Popular Spots In India