Washington: A non-resident Indian (NRI), Swati Shah Patel has been appointed as deputy chief counsel to the newly sworn in Republican Governor of South Carolina, Mark Sanford.

The co-chairman of the India Caucus and Republican Congressman from South Carolina Joe Wilson has congratulated Patel.

Wilson said, "I am very excited that Governor Sanford has chosen to hire Ms Patel as part of his new administration. Ms Patel is an extraordinary individual, and I am confident she will do a wonderful job while serving with the Governor."

"As the co-chair of the India Caucus, I am always excited to see such talented Indian-Americans elevated to high ranking administration positions both on the state and federal level," he added.

Patel was one of the first Indian Americans admitted to practice law in South Carolina.

Upon graduation from the University of South Carolina School of Law in 1997, Patel was hired as an attorney on the South Carolina House of Representatives' Judiciary Committee, where she worked for Chairman Jim Harrison.

Governor Sanford previously served three terms in Congress representing the First Congressional District of South Carolina from 1994-2000. He was elected Governor of South Carolina and sworn in on January 15, 2003.

PTI