Huge support for Tulsi Gabbard in Dallas

Dallas, Texas: US Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard (Hawaii's 2nd Congressional District) visited Dallas with a busy schedule on a two day trip on the occasion of the grand unveiling of the Mahatma Gandhi statue in Irving, TX.

Congresswoman Gabbard attended a dinner get together on Thursday hosted by Mrs. Swarupa & Dr. Prasad Thotakura, Chairman, Mahatma Gandhi Memorial of North Texas (MGMNT) at their home in Colleyville. It was well attended by distinguished guests including Mr. Satish Dhupelia, the great grandson of Mahatma Gandhi, South Africa, Dr. Prasad Gollanapalli, Sevagram , Sabarmathi Ashram, Mr. Mandali Buddha Prasad, Deputy Speaker, Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly, Padma Shri Dr. Yarlagadda Lakshmi Prasad, former Member of Parliament, Mr. Y. V. Subba Reddy, Member of Parliament, Mr. Sekhar Perala, BJP National Executive Committee Member, Dr. Aluri Venkata Sivakumari, Secretary ' Lions Club, Chennai, Mrs. Vijaya Chamundeswari (daughter of Maha Nati Savithri), Chennai, Mr. Sathish Ganesan (son of Maha Nati Savithri), California, Mrs. Chandra Valluri (Indian Embassy, Washington DC) besides a number of MGMNT Team members and volunteers.

Tulsi attended a breakfast meeting on Friday in Fort Worth, TX, hosted by Mrs. Subhashini & Dr. Subrahmanyam Boyareddi and Dr. Vinaya & Mr. Murali Vennam. It was attended by many local physicians and discussed several topics related to healthcare, youth participation in politics and collaborative efforts of the Indian American community to have a unified voice and strength in the mainstream.

After the breakfast meeting, Tulsi visited the newly built 'Hindu Temple of Greater Fort Worth'. Temple priest and management gave her a warm 'poornakumbha swagatham'. Temple Chairman - Dr. Subrahmanyam Boyareddi, President - Mrs. Lakshmi Namburu, Secretary - Dr. Venkat Namburu and Treasurer - Murali Vennam and other members of the Temple gave her a detailed tour of the temple. Tulsi showed special interest and a lot of excitement to know the progress and developments of the Temple as she was also present during the ground breaking ceremony two years ago.

After Temple visit in Fort Worth, Tulsi visited the Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Plaza in Irving. She paid homage to Mahatma Gandhi by offering a bouquet of flowers and standing for few minutes in silence with folded hands to the Global Leader who stood for peace and harmony. Tulsi complimented Dr. Prasad Thotakura and his team for memorializing a remarkable plaza which would be a great inspiration for the next generation. Dr. Prasad Thotakura, Chairman and Rao Kalvala, Secretary & Construction Chair of MGMNT explained the mission and objectives of this project.

Dr. Prasad Thotakura, Mrs. Subhashini & Dr. Subrahmanyam, Mr. Murali Vennam and Mr. Gopal Ponangi arranged a fundraising luncheon at Pasand Indian Cuisine, Irving to support Tulsi for Congress. Dr. Prasad Thotakura introducing Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard urged everyone to support Tulsi the youngest woman US Congressmember, who served in US military with a great patriotic fervor, practices Hinduism since her childhood, always carries Bhagavad Gita, a strong voice of the Hindu community in Washington DC. Community members extended a huge financial support and applauded Tulsi for her firm stand on certain critical issues and a key role that she is playing in US Congress currently. The Fundraising luncheon was well attended by several Indian American leaders include Mr. Kalyan Viswanathan, Sanantana Dharma Foundation, Mrs. Kalpana Fruitwala, Mrs. Hema Mohan, Mr. Subrahmanyam , Ekal Vidyalaya, Mr. Prashant Patel, Mr. Anshul Agarwal and Mrs. Parul Agarwal, HSS, Mrs. Sangeetha Chandrakanthan, Global Organization for Divinity, Dr. Rajiv Pandit, Hindu American Foundation, Mr. I V Rao, Global Hindu Heritage Foundation, Mr. Srinath Chakravarthy, Sanskrutha Bharathi, Mr. Chalapathi Rao Kondrakunta, Mr. Srikanth Polavarapu, Mr. Sanjay -Tanmayi Jewellers, Mr. Sanjay Anand, Mr. Sanjay Tiwari, Mr. Sunil Patel and several other members of the community at large.

Tulsi thanked everyone who attended and extended a lot of support and urged Indian American community to be proactive in mainstream politics especially youth to come forward to serve the community and country with a passion and dedication.

Mrs. Subhashini & Dr. Subrahmanyam, Mr. Murali Vennam, Mr. Gopal Ponangi and Dr. Prasad Thotakura felicitated Congresswoman with a beautiful bouquet of flowers, shawl and a beautiful wooden carving painting of Lord Krishna. Mr. Gopal Ponangi thanked Pasand for providing sumptuous lunch, community for their generous support and Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard for attending the event despite her hectic schedule.

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