Trump nominates Indian-American Dhillon as assistant AG for civil rights

US President-elect Donald Trump has nominated Indian-American Harmeet K Dhillon as Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights at the Department of Justice.

I am pleased to nominate Harmeet K. Dhillon as Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights at the US Department of Justice, Trump announced on Monday on Truth Social, a social media platform owned by him.

Dhillon, a Sikh, is a graduate of Dartmouth College and the University of Virginia Law School, and has clerked in the US Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals.

Throughout her career, Harmeet has stood up consistently to protect our cherished civil liberties, including taking on big tech for censoring our free speech, representing Christians who were prevented from praying together during COVID, and suing corporations who use woke policies to discriminate against their workers, he said.

Harmeet is one of the top election lawyers in the country, fighting to ensure that all, and ONLY, legal votes are counted.

Harmeet is a respected member of the Sikh religious community. In her new role at the DOJ, Harmeet will be a tireless defender of our constitutional rights, and will enforce our civil rights and election laws FAIRLY and FIRMLY, said the President-elect.

Dhillon was subject to racial attack after she recited Ardas at the Republican National Convention in July this year. Last year, she unsuccessfully ran for the position of Republican National Committee chairmanship.

Chandigarh-born Dhillon, 54, moved to the United States when she was a child along with her parents. In 2016, she was the first Indian-American to appear on the stage of the GOP Convention in Cleveland.

I'm extremely honored by President Trump's nomination to assist with our nation's civil rights agenda. It has been my dream to be able to serve our great country, and I am so excited to be part of an incredible team of lawyers led by @PamBondi. I cannot wait to get to work! Dhillon said in a post on X later.

I would not be here today without my amazing mother and brother's support, and my beloved father Tejpal and husband Sarv, who did not live to see this day. I hope I will honour their memories, with God's grace, she added in the post.