NEW DELHI: Louisiana Governor and US presidential candidate Bobby Jindal caused a Twitter storm of jokes and insults in India on Thursday after he said he dislikes being called an Indian-American.

Republican Jindal is the first person of Indian origin to join the US presidential race. During his campaign, Jindal said he was “done with” descriptions that identified Americans by their origin, ethnicity or wealth.

“We are not Indian-Americans, African-Americans, Irish-Americans, rich Americans, or poor Americans. We are all Americans,” the two-term governor said to loud cheers at the event in a suburb of New Orleans.

The comment, however, was interpreted by some people on Twitter as an attempt to distance himself from India.

The hashtag #BobbyJindalIsSoWhite recorded more than 6,400 tweets and was among India’s top trending topics on Thursday.

“#BobbyJindalIsSoWhite teacher used to use him as a chalk on board,” said one Twitter user named aindrila. Another user, Yusuf B, said: “#BobbyJindalIsSoWhite that we only see the outline of his body when he stands in front of a white wall.”

Jindal’s office could not be reached out of business hours on Thursday.

Some people also came out in Jindal’s support. “Strange, he is being ridiculed for his assertion of his Americanship,” Twitter user Rajiv wrote.

Jindal, who converted from Hinduism to Christianity as a teenager, is popular with social conservatives and evangelical Christians.

But he has struggled recently with a fiscal crisis in his state. He frequently ranks near the bottom end of opinion polls of Republicans seeking the party’s nomination in the 2016 election.

In January, Jindal made similar remarks and said his parents moved to America to be Americans.

“If we wanted to be Indians, we would have stayed in India,” Jindal said.

Jindal announced his campaign online earlier Wednesday. Video clips on his website showed Jindal and his wife, Supriya, talking to their three children about the campaign to come.

Aides discussed Jindal’s plans to focus on social conservatives, as he has done for months in extensive travels, and highlight his reputation as a leader steeped in policy.

Jindal intends to present himself as “the youngest candidate with the longest resume,” citing an extensive background in public policy and government, strategist Curt Anderson said.

Unpopular at home, Jindal waited until the state legislative session had ended and lawmakers found a way to close a $1.6 billion budget gap before he scheduled his presidential announcement.