Explained: Why FBI chief Kash Patel's handshake with Pakistan Army Chief Asif Munir infuriated desis; divided social media

When Kash Patel came to his Congressional confirmation as FBI chief , he chanted Jai Shree Krishna, touched his parents’ feet, and swore on the Bhagavad Gita — the perfect amalgamation of diaspora sanskar and MAGA defiance. The man who broke every stereotype about Indian-Americans is now at the centre of a storm: a single photo of him shaking hands with Pakistan’s Army Chief Asim Munir has ignited outrage across India and its diaspora.

Driving the news

President Donald Trump hosted Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Field Marshal Asim Munir at the White House last week. Among the senior American officials present was FBI Director Kash Patel. While Trump’s hospitality for Pakistan’s leadership was expected, the image of Patel — Indian-origin, Hindu, and a vocal defender of the Ram Mandir — warmly greeting Munir struck a raw nerve. The photo went viral, spawning accusations of betrayal, opportunism, and hypocrisy.


The reactions reflected a sharp divide. Some critics called Patel’s gesture with Munir a disgrace for the Hindus across the world, given Munir's utterances about Indians and Hindus. Others took a more pragmatic view, noting that as FBI Director “he could hardly decline such a greeting in his official capacity.” Still others pushed back against the controversy itself, asking why every episode was filtered through religion: “Munir is a Pakistani, Patel is an American — both will inevitably prioritise national interests over faith.”

Why it matters

Jai Shri Krishna…….

How @Kash_Patel began his speech at his congressional hearing after first introducing his parents and sister from India….. pic.twitter.com/U9ateObPvS

— Alok Bhatt (@alok_bhatt) January 30, 2025

• Religious optics: Patel’s past positions on Hindu identity amplify the symbolism. He has publicly defended the Ram Temple as a 500-year civilisational struggle. Munir, meanwhile, has repeatedly championed the Two-Nation Theory, framing Hindus and Muslims as fundamentally different. For critics, their handshake was a clash of incompatible worldviews.
• Geopolitical timing: The gesture came just months after the Pahalgam terror attack.
• Diaspora expectations: Patel isn’t seen as just another US official. With his Gujarat roots, Hindu upbringing, and Trump’s chosen face of Hindu outreach, his actions are judged as cultural representation as much as diplomatic routine.
• US tilt toward Pakistan: The optics worsen at a time when Trump has already unsettled Delhi — from tariffs to public praise for Pakistan’s diplomacy.

US–India relations: the fraught backdrop

Patel’s handshake cannot be separated from the broader drift in Trump-era India–US ties:

• Tariff war: India has been hit with tariffs as high as 50% on its exports — the steepest in the world. Pakistan, by contrast, faces only 19%, the lowest in South Asia.
• Pakistan tilt: Trump has courted Islamabad with new trade incentives, cooperation in oil exploration, and diplomatic photo-ops. For Delhi, it signals a pivot away from India at a delicate moment.
• Nobel frustration: Trump has reportedly bristled that India has not nominated him for the Nobel Peace Prize, a personal slight that has seeped into diplomatic irritation. Ironically, New Delhi is one of the only establishments who have openly defied Trump even as allies have bent over to fete him.

Ceasefire claims — and India’s rebuttals:

In May 2025, Trump claimed he “brokered” a ceasefire between India and Pakistan. Delhi said it was negotiated directly by the two militaries. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh called Trump’s assertion that India stopped operations “under pressure” baseless. The Ministry of External Affairs issued a six-point rebuttal, stressing that no US leverage or trade carrots influenced its decision. At the UN in September 2025, India declared “no room for any third party” in its disputes, directly rejecting Trump’s boast of mediation. Even Pakistan acknowledged that India flatly rejected third-party involvement during Operation Sindoor. Despite this, Trump continues to credit himself for “calling off” India’s military actions — a narrative Delhi has consistently dismissed.


The big picture

• Trump’s Hindu outreach: From Diwali speeches to opposing California’s caste bill, Trump had aggressively wooed Hindu-Americans before the 2024 US Presidential Elections. Patel, with his religious identity and pro-Modi rhetoric, is an important part of that effort.
• Patel’s rise: Unlike the model-minority template, Patel built his career on defiance. He wrote the Nunes memo, became Trump’s Russiagate warrior, and cultivated a brand of being loud, unapologetic, and Hindu. He is Trump’s dharma warrior in Washington, embodying both sanskar and swagger.
• Protocol vs symbolism: Defenders insist Patel was only following diplomatic protocol. But when India–Pakistan relations are this combustible, and Trump has already alienated Delhi, even a handshake cannot escape political weight.
• Diaspora politics: Patel embodies the tension of being both an American official and a Hindu son of Gujarat. That double burden makes every act — even a courtesy greeting — a test of loyalty in the eyes of the diaspora.

Bottom line

Kash Patel is no ordinary bureaucrat. He is the Hindu face of Trump’s MAGA world, the chief of the FBI, the man who chanted Jai Shree Krishna in Congress, and the rare Indian-American to turn faith into political muscle. That is why his handshake with Asim Munir is not being judged as protocol but as a betrayal of history, faith, and India’s strained relationship with Trump’s America. Of course it's important to remember that loyalties come in different forms, and Patel's is too Donald Trump before anything else.