Washington: The Washington, DC-based lobbying firm Squire Patton Boggs, confirmed that it was no longer working on behalf of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the ideological organisation closely associated with India’s leading Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) after reports claiming that the RSS had launched its first known lobbying campaign targeting members of US Congress last January surfaced.
‘RSS not registered as foreign entity…’
Squire Patton Boggs reportedly terminated the campaign weeks after a report filed by Prism was published, detailing the RSS’s lobbying activities, according to public disclosures. The Prism report had also claimed that ‘a review of congressional disclosure documents by Prism found that the RSS had not been identified as a foreign entity, despite the organization being based in India. Multiple experts on foreign influence operations interviewed by Prism also raised concerns that Squire Patton Boggs did not register its RSS lobbying under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), a 1938 law that requires transparency from representatives of foreign interests.’
‘RSS’s activities fully disclosed under Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995’
But, an RSS publication, as per the same report, claimed that the RSS’s activities were fully disclosed under the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (LDA), a transparency law for activities to influence the federal government.
Know the contract
According to the firm’s updated disclosure, its contract — which aimed to “introduce the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) to US officials” — was terminated on September 30, 2025. Squire Patton Boggs was initially registered in January 2025 through State Street Strategies (also known as One+ Strategies). Former Republican Congressman Bill Shuster was among the lead lobbyists associated with the contract, reported Hindustan Times.
In disclosures filed with the US Congress, the firm also corrected earlier filings to show that it was engaged by an individual named Vivek Sharma — not the RSS — to help raise awareness of the organisation among US policymakers.
Sharma, based in Acton, Massachusetts, was later identified as the executive chairman of Cohance Lifesciences. Professional records show he has more than two decades of experience in the pharmaceutical and financial sectors. In the initial lobbying documents, Sharma was listed as a contributor, who provided more than $5,000 in funding and helped oversee or influence the lobbying efforts, according to Hindustan Times report. However, the reports don’t cite any comment from Vivek Sharma, Squire Patton Boggs or State Street Strategies.
Squire Patton Boggs also previously held a lobbying contract with the government of Pakistan in 2025, which had since been terminated as well.
