Also appointed to the Council are several Indian Americans from across the US, including two of Senator Obama's closest Indian-American advisers, former New York Solicitor General Preeta Bansal and erstwhile Law Secretary of the city of Cleveland, Ohio, Subodh Chandra.
The Obama campaign said the Leadership Council was an effort to 'expand on the historic grassroots campaign to bring fundamental change to Washington and our politics,' and noted that it 'consists of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders leaders and activists from across the nation, representing every sector of our society, including community,nonprofit, entertainment, business, government, law, academic and media.'
"Barack Obama has a long track record of promoting policies that is important to the AAPI community," Kalayil said, and added, "His depth of experience in bridging the many divides combined with his sound judgment is what I believe will make a better America."
Kalayil, a delegate to the Democratic National Convention in 2004 from Illinois and a former office holder in the Democratic National Committee, helped mobilise Asian American and Indian-American support for Obama when he first ran for the state Senate in Illinois and then the US Senate. She told rediff.com that the Council's purpose "would be to provide advice to the campaign on issues and on everything relating to the AAPI (Asian American and Pacific Islander) community."
"So there will be
Kalayil, a manager in networking services at the University of Chicago and an adjunct lecturer in history at Loyola College, said the Council's composition was "not so much as young activists but more grassroots."
She said besides meetings, members of the Council would "be utilised by the campaign as surrogate speakers or just sort of to help energise the base so that we can in the end, deliver the vote."
Bansal, a partner with the New York law firm of Skadden Arps, said, "As we try to work to clean up America's image and policy towards the world and its policies at home, I can think of no better leader than Senator Obama, who -- in part because who he is and where he came from, but also because of what he believes in -- would give America a whole new fresh chance."
"I am delighted and honoured to be among the Asian Americans supporting Senator Obama in this race, and as he forges his career in public service," Chandra said. "He personally embodies the equal opportunity that this country offered my parents, and offers me and my three sons. So, win or lose, he has my support and gratitude."
Kalayil, Bansal and Chandra all told rediff.com that even though Obama trails Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, the frontrunner for the Democratic Presidential nomination, in all the national polls by more than 20 points -- despite his rock star-like status, massive fundraising and ability to draw huge crowds -- the polls did not reflect the true picture. They predicted that once he takes the Iowa Caucus -- where he is running on par with Clinton -- that would launch a new momentum to his campaign to be America's next President.
