Venezuela’s New President Delcy Rodríguez Shares Special Connection with India

New Delhi: Venezuela’s newly appointed acting President, Delcy Eloina Rodríguez, has a unique bond with India, having visited the country twice in consecutive years, 2023 and 2024. Her visits are closely tied to her spiritual devotion to the renowned guru Sathya Sai Baba, whose ashram in Andhra Pradesh she frequently visits.

Rise to Presidency
Delcy Rodríguez, formerly Vice President of Venezuela since 2018, assumed the country’s top position following the arrest of President Nicolás Maduro by U.S. authorities in New York. The Venezuelan Supreme Court directed Rodríguez to take over the presidential duties, citing Maduro’s temporary inability to perform his official functions. Rodríguez now holds all powers, responsibilities, and privileges of the presidency in an acting capacity.

Spiritual Ties with India
Rodríguez is a devoted follower of Sathya Sai Baba, similar to Maduro. During her visits, she has paid respects at the Prasanthi Nilayam ashram and participated in various spiritual ceremonies. Her last visit to India was in October 2024, immediately after attending the BRICS Summit in Kazan. During this trip, she met with then-Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar and made a private visit to the ashram in Puttaparthi to offer tributes.

Her first notable visit was in October 2019, when she toured Prasanthi Nilayam with Venezuelan ministers. Later, in August 2023, she returned to India as part of the Venezuelan delegation for the G20 Summit in New Delhi, accompanied by Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs Kapaya Rodríguez.

A Global Leader with Indian Spiritual Roots
Delcy Rodríguez’s repeated visits and spiritual connection highlight a rare India-Venezuela cultural linkage, showing how personal faith can intersect with global political roles. Her devotion to Indian spiritual traditions has made her tenure as acting president notable not only for Venezuelan politics but also for the symbolic bridge it creates between India and Latin America.