NY City Comptroller Scott M. Stringer honors three at Diwali celebration

New York City Comptroller Scott M. Stringer hosted a well attended Diwali celebration at the David Dinkins Municipal Building in Manhattan, November 26. At the event Stringer honored Judge Ushir Pandit-Durant, who has been elected to the New York Supreme Court recently and two community service organizations, Adhikar and Jahajee Sisters.

The event began with greetings by Dr. Neeta Jain, District Leader, Assembly District NY-25, Part B, who spoke about the significance of Diwali. She thanked the comptroller for hosting Diwali and recognizing the community.
Pandit Tillack Seerattan of Shri Devi Mandir conducted Diwali prayers and led the Diya lighting.

Hon. Stringer welcomed the gathering with Diwali greetings. He noted the importance of Diwali, which celebrates the victory of goodness over evil and light over darkness. He also pointed out his good relations with the South Asian community and wished them success and prosperity in the New Year.

Attorney Shekar Krishnan, director of legal Advocacy and strategic partnerships at Brooklyn Legal Services Corporation A, introduced Comptroller Stringer.
Comptroller Stringer presented the awards. Prarthana Gurung, Campaigns and Communications Manager accepted the award for Adhikar.

Simone Jhingoor and Shivana Jorawar, co-chairs of steering committee received the award for Jahajee Sisters.

The event ended with a performance by Deepti Mathur of Manhattan Andaaz, all-female Bollywood/Fusion Dance Company.

Judge Ushir Pandit-Durant emigrated to the US when she was ten. In 2015, she was elected to the Civil Court in Queens County, making her the first South Asian woman elected to the bench in New York State. As a Civil Court Judge, she was assigned to the Criminal Term where she presided over a criminal court in Manhattan and then in Queens. Earlier this month, she was elected to New York Supreme Court.

Judge Pandit-Durant is a founding member and the first President of the South Asian & Indo Caribbean Bar Association of Queens County (SAICBA-Q), whose mission is to cultivate diversity in the field of law, offer professional development and mentorship, and increase access to legal services.

Prior to her election to the bench, Judge Pandit-Durant was an assistant district attorney in the Queens County District Attorney’s Office for over 25 years, working in various bureaus including criminal court, special victims bureau, supreme court, and most recently, the appeals bureau. As an ADA in the Appeals Bureau, she appeared in all of the courts of New York State, as well as the Eastern District and the Second Circuit.

Judge Pandit-Durant received her undergraduate degree from Saint John’s University and her J.D. degree from New York Law School.

Adhikaar, meaning ‘rights’ in Nepali, is the only women-led community center and workers center in Queens mobilizing the Nepali-speaking community to promote human rights and social justice for all. Since 2005, Adhikaar has assisted thousands of Nepali-speaking immigrants and families, trained and developed hundreds of leaders, and successfully changed policies and created new laws at the local, state and national level. The organization provides services for and organizes domestic workers, nail salon workers, gas station workers, and other low-income workers, and also works in
coalitions to create political change on a broad spectrum of issues that impact workers, immigrants, women and people of color.

Adhikaar currently has four program areas: workers’ rights, immigration rights, access to affordable healthcare and language justice. The organization has celebrated many successes including the passage of the Domestic Workers’ Bill of Rights in 2010 and Nail Salon Workers’ Bill of Rights in 2015. They have successfully recovered $327,947 through wage theft cases and are at the forefront of the fight for a permanent legislative solution for all Temporary Protected Status (TPS) holders.

Founded in 2007, Jahajee Sisters is an Indo-Caribbean organization committed to creating a safe and equitable society for women, girls and gender nonconforming people. They foster solidarity and empowerment through dialogue, healing, the arts, leadership development and grassroots organizing.

Jahajee Sisters is the only movement-building organization centering the leadership and voices of Indo-Caribbean survivors of gender-based violence. The organization began after two young Indo-Caribbean women were killed, both victims of gender-based violence. Alarmed by the silence of their community leaders, the organization’s founders became the leaders that were needed.
Jahajee Sisters has developed bold and courageous leaders, built a strong membership base, and forged lasting partnerships for gender justice.

Their programs support survivors to heal, cultivate personal power, and be agents of change. By addressing the root causes of gender-based violence and building new feminist values, practices, and institutions, they are ushering in a brighter future for Indo-Caribbean women, girls and gender nonconforming people.

Photos: Susan Watts/Office of New York City Comptroller Scott M. Stringer

Photos: Susan Watts/Office of New York City Comptroller Scott M. Stringer