Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Back in India, a proud uncle and aunt admire 'very committed' Kamala Harris

KAMALA HARRIS'S late mother left India in 1960, but half a world away from Washington the uncle and aunt of the US vice-president hopeful follow her every move -- and are very proud.

Harris was born in California in 1964 to a Jamaican father, economics professor John Harris, and breast cancer specialist Shyamala Gopalan.


She was the first black attorney general of California -- the first woman to hold the post -- and the first woman of South Asian heritage to be elected to the US Senate.

Following her nomination on Tuesday as presidential hopeful Joe Biden's running mate, the 55-year-old is now seeking to become the first female vice president of the US.

"There is no question about how happy we are," Harris's maternal uncle Balachandran Gopalan, an academic in the Indian capital New Delhi, told AFP on Wednesday (12).

"She is a very committed personality -- committed to public service and most importantly committed to common human decency," he said.

Shyamala would often bring her daughters to India, the uncle said, and when she died in 2009 Harris returned "to immerse her ashes in the Bay of Bengal".

He added that while Harris can't speak Tamil, the language of the southern state of Tamil Nadu that the family comes from, "she can understand a little bit".

He believes the nomination of Kamala -- her name meaning "lotus" in Tamil, as well as in Sanskrit and Hindi -- is a "big deal" for Indian Americans.

"So far they have only achieved high professional jobs, but this is one of the highest political jobs," he said.

Harris's aunt Sarala Gopalan, who still lives in the city her big sister left at 19 -- Tamil Nadu's capital Chennai, formerly Madras -- said the entire family is "thrilled and happy".

"A friend of mine in the US gave us the message at 4am, and we have been up, since then," Gopalan, a doctor, told Indian media.

"She is a person who never forgets her roots and believes in family values.

"Even today she calls me chithi [Tamil word for a mother's younger sister], and she has always been a caring person."

She added that Harris was "very caring and kind to people".

"If I send her a message right now saying 'Kamala I need you', the next day she will be here," the aunt said.

And since Shyamala is no longer alive, "we will always be available for Kamala and (her sister) Maya", she added.

Besides her mother, Harris has said that a major influence was her maternal grandfather P.V. Gopalan -- father of Shyamala, Balachandran, Sarala and another daughter, Mahalakshmi -- a senior Indian civil servant.

"He would take walks every morning along the beach with his buddies who were all retired government officials and they would talk about politics, about how corruption must be fought and about justice," Harris said in a 2009 interview.

"My grandfather was really one of my favourite people in my world."

More For You

F-35B jet

The UK has agreed to move the aircraft to the Maintenance Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facility at the airport.

Indian Air Force

F-35B jet still stranded in Kerala, UK sends engineers for repair

UK AVIATION engineers are arriving in Thiruvananthapuram to carry out repairs on an F-35B Lightning jet belonging to the Royal Navy, which has remained grounded after an emergency landing 12 days ago.

The jet is part of the HMS Prince of Wales Carrier Strike Group of the UK's Royal Navy. It made the emergency landing at Thiruvananthapuram airport on June 14. The aircraft, valued at over USD 110 million, is among the most advanced fighter jets in the world.

Keep ReadingShow less
Ahmedabad air crash
Relatives carry the coffin of a victim, who was killed in the Air India Flight 171 crash, during a funeral ceremony in Ahmedabad on June 15, 2025. (Photo: Getty Images)

Ahmedabad crash: Grief, denial and trauma haunt families

TWO weeks after the crash of Air India flight AI-171 in Ahmedabad, families of victims are grappling with grief and trauma. Psychiatrists are now working closely with many who continue to oscillate between denial and despair.

The crash occurred on June 12, when the London-bound flight hit the BJ Medical College complex shortly after takeoff, killing 241 people on board and 29 on the ground. Only one passenger survived.

Keep ReadingShow less
Starmer apologises for 'island of strangers' immigration speech

Prime minister Keir Starmer delivers a speech at The British Chambers of Commerce Global Annual Conference in London on June 26, 2025. (Photo by EDDIE MULHOLLAND/AFP via Getty Images)

Starmer apologises for 'island of strangers' immigration speech

PRIME MINISTER Sir Keir Starmer has admitted he was wrong to warn that Britain could become an "island of strangers" due to high immigration, saying he "deeply" regrets the controversial phrase.

Speaking to The Observer, Sir Keir said he would not have used those words if he had known they would be seen as echoing the language of Enoch Powell's notorious 1968 "rivers of blood" speech.

Keep ReadingShow less
Sir Sajid Javid leads commission 'tackling social divisions'

Sir Sajid Javid (Photo by Tom Nicholson-WPA Pool/Getty Images)

Sir Sajid Javid leads commission 'tackling social divisions'

A cross-party group has been formed to tackle the deep divisions that sparked last summer's riots across England. The new commission will be led by former Tory minister Sir Sajid Javid and ex-Labour MP Jon Cruddas.

The Independent Commission on Community and Cohesion has backing from both prime minister Sir Keir Starmer and Tory leader Kemi Badenoch. It brings together 19 experts from different political parties and walks of life.

Keep ReadingShow less
​Masum

Masum was seen on CCTV trying to steer the pram away and, when she refused to go with him, stabbed her multiple times before walking away and boarding a bus. (Photo: West Yorkshire Police)

West Yorkshire Police

Habibur Masum convicted of murdering estranged wife in front of baby

A MAN who stabbed his estranged wife to death in Bradford in front of their baby has been convicted of murder.

Habibur Masum, 26, attacked 27-year-old Kulsuma Akter in broad daylight on April 6, 2024, stabbing her more than 25 times while she pushed their seven-month-old son in a pram. The baby was not harmed.

Keep ReadingShow less