NEW YORK — Ahead of November 8 mid-term elections in the US, an Indian-American Republican candidat who is contesting for the New York State Assembly District 16, has apologised for a tweet which he has now deleted targeting the Muslim community, saying his intent was never to hurt anyone, reports PTI.
Vibhuti Jha, 70, is running against Democrat Gina Sillitti for the New York State Assembly District 16 elections to be held on Tuesday.
“I deleted a tweet that appeared several months ago forwarded by someone to me! I believe some of the Muslim groups were unhappy about the content & comparison made therein. I u/s the joke didn’t go down well. I confirm the intent was never to hurt anyone,” Jha said in a tweet last week.
“I want to add I have very good Muslim friends — we share mutual respect for each other and share jokes and laughter in these difficult times. Friendship is all about sharing joy, anger and move the life forward (sic). We have to face our challenges together,” he said in another tweet.
In his election pitch, Jha says that he is focused on preserving the American Dream for families who call Long Island home. He talks about the need to restore policies that made America the most prosperous country in the world where people aspire to migrate to at any given point in time.
According to his LinkedIn profile, Jha is the Managing Director of New York-based financial services firm Global Capital Service Group. He is also the co-founder of Relaxxapp, a mind and body fitness app.
Jha came to the US in 1991 with the American Express Bank, to build and develop Indo-U.S. business relationships.
New York’s 16th State Assembly district is one of the 150 districts in the New York State Assembly. It has been represented by Sillitti since 2021.
District 16 is located in Nassau County within the town of North Hempstead. The district includes the villages of Great Neck, North Hills, East Hills, Flower Hill, Old Westbury, Roslyn Estates, and Lake Success, as well as the hamlets of Roslyn Heights, Port Washington and Herricks. (With inputs from PTI)
