NEW DELHI: India’s ambassador to Qatar, Vipul, has been appointed the next Indian ambassador to Saudi Arabia, govt said in an official announcement on Tuesday. An IFS officer of 1998 batch, Vipul is expected to take up the new assignment soon. The appointment is significant as this is the first time that a non-Muslim will head India’s diplomatic mission in Riyadh. While India has mostly appointed career diplomats as ambassador to the Kingdom, political appointees have also served as envoys in Riyadh. MOH Farook served as Indian ambassador from 2004 to 2009 and former Mumbai police commissioner Ahmad Javed from 2016 to 2019. Vipul has served in Indian missions in Cairo, Colombo, Geneva and Dubai. He has also headed MEA’s Gulf division. TNN