What Trump has said leaves no scope for doubt. The fact is that USAID funds came from America to India in the name of increasing voters’ turnout, but they were used to destabilize the Modi government.
US President Donald Trump has stirred a hornets’ nest by questioning the former Biden administration’s move to provide $21 million to India for the ostensible reason of enhancing “voter turnout”. Addressing a summit in Miami on Thursday, Trump said, “Why do we need to spend $21 million on voter turnout in India? I guess they were trying to get somebody else elected. We have got to tell the Indian Government… This is a total breakthrough.”
At his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida, Trump said, “Why are we giving $21 million to India? They got a lot more money. They are one of the highest taxing countries in the world in terms of us; we can hardly get in there because their tariffs are so high. I have a lot of respect for India and their Prime Minister, but giving $21 million for voter turnout? In India? What about voter turnout here?” Let us try to interpret the message that Trump was trying to convey. He wants to tell that the money that was funnelled through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) was used to defeat Narendra Modi and his party BJP in last year’s Lok Sabha elections.
Trump’s remarks came a few days after the US Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), headed by billionaire Elon Musk, stopped USAID funding to different countries to the tune of $ 486 million. DOGE released a list of funds that were channelled through USAID to different countries of the world for various purposes. Out of this, $21 million was earmarked for boosting “voter turnout” in India.
DOGE also said, $29 million was earmarked for “strengthening the political landscape in Bangladesh”, where former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was unseated after a violent nationwide agitation led by students and backed by the main opposition BNP and Islamic fundamentalist party Jamaat-e-Islami. At that time, there were allegations that the US “deep state” was involved in ousting Sheikh Hasina from power.
Trump’s remarks had a political fallout in India. It is known to all that much of the USAID funds are channelized through outfits floated by another billionaire George Soros. Soros is on record of having said that he wanted to encourage moves to unseat Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The USAID money that was earmarked was to persuade Dalit and OBC voters in India to come out and take part in voting. At around the same time, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi raised his demand for a nationwide caste census. Rahul Gandhi went to the US where he said, “Democracy has been under attack in India, and it has been very badly weakened.” At that time Rahul Gandhi had met several top officials of the Biden administration and US lawmakers.
After Trump’s remarks, senior BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad on Thursday said that Trump has confirmed that $21 million was given to influence voters’ turnout in India. “We have all along been alleging that Rahul Gandhi was trying to weaken Indian democracy and what Congress has done is a matter of disgrace for the country “, he said. Congress described Trump’s claim as “nonsensical”. In a hard-hitting post on X, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh demanded a white paper from the Modi government about USAID support given to various government organizations and NGOs in India.
What Trump has said leaves no scope for doubt. The fact is that USAID funds came from America to India in the name of increasing voters’ turnout, but they were used to destabilize the Modi government. I salute the sagacity of the voters of India who were not influenced by this campaign funded by the US. The people of India voted Modi to power for the third time.
It is an open secret that Rahul Gandhi and his party benefited and the Congress tally in Lok Sabha increased. What Trump has revealed is a clear admission that the US government has been bringing about changes in governments in other countries by funnelling money. The same was sought to be done in India, but that move failed. What happened in our neighbouring countries like Bangladesh and Pakistan in recent months is known to all.
Trump has put a full stop to this game. The US President does not want to spend his government’s money on destabilizing governments in other countries. This is a 360-degree turn in US policy. You can see its effects in Ukraine. Former President Biden’s administration was providing massive support to Ukraine in its war with Russia. Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was getting military and monetary support from the US in his war against Russia. The US gave $300 billion support to Ukraine, but now Trump has taken a U-turn and has opted to cut a deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
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