JD Vance's meeting with Indian-American investor draws criticism amid H-1B visa debate
A photograph shared by Silicon Valley venture capitalist Asha Jadeja Motwani with US Vice President
JD Vance
has sparked discussion on social media, coming at a time when debate around the
H-1B visa
program has intensified.
According to a report by The Times of India, Motwani, an Indian-origin investor known for backing over 100
tech startups
, posted the image following a private family gathering with JD Vance and his wife, Usha Vance. In her post, she noted that immigration was among the key topics of discussion at the dinner.
'Many of us on the table had been Democrats, just like him, for over 30 years. Our departure from the Democratic Party to the center right had many resonances,' she wrote. Motwani mentioned that she gifted a small statue of Lord Ganesha to the couple. 'They loved it, and Usha told me that her older son actually wanted one... three of us hit it off beautifully for some reason,' the post read.
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According to Motwani, both JD and Usha Vance were 'humble to a fault' and open to discussion. 'JD took endless questions from about a dozen of us around the dining table and answered them patiently. I had concerns about
immigration policies
and wanted to be reassured that America will not lose highly gifted and talented immigrants from foreign countries — top brains of the world. He gets an A+,' she added.
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The meeting has led to criticism from some social media users, especially as it came shortly after the
US Citizenship and Immigration Services
(
USCIS
) announced that over 120,000 H-1B visa applications had been cleared for the fiscal year 2026. The update has reignited concerns among US tech workers, with many expressing frustration over job losses and low-wage hiring associated with the visa program.
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The debate was further fuelled by Walmart's recent announcement of 1,500 job cuts in tech roles.
Some users expressed disapproval of the meeting. One wrote, 'Let me get this straight, JD Vance just wined and dined with a BJP RSS agent of India to facilitate India's national interests, we can kiss our economy goodbye.' Others called for an end to the H-1B visa program, stating that it affects employment opportunities for American workers.
The US government has not issued an official statement on the meeting or on any policy changes related to the H-1B program following this event.
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