JEDDAH, 6 March 2006 — A career diplomat and former Indian ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Hamid Ansari, has been appointed chairman of the National Commission for Minorities (NCM).
Ansari, who succeeds Tarlochan Singh, will assume charge today.
The commission has constitutional powers with regard to minority issues. The government has already brought a bill in the Parliament to raise the status of the NCM to that of constitutional commission.
An expert on West Asia, Ansari has also served as vice chancellor of Aligarh Muslim University. He is a distinguished fellow at the Observer Research Foundation and a visiting professor at the Academy of Third World Studies, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi.
He is also a member of the executive council of the Banaras Hindu University, of the executive committee of the India International Center, New Delhi and of the India-UK Round Table.
Ansari joined the Indian Foreign Service (IFS) in 1961. He served as ambassador to the United Arab Emirates, Afghanistan, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and high commissioner to Australia, and India’s permanent representative to the United Nations. He was awarded the Padma Shri, a civilian honor, in 1984.
