USAID Row
Congress slams BJP for false narrative on USAID funding
This story was originally published at 16:24 IST on 21 February 2025
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NEW DELHI – The Congress party on Friday slammed the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government for allegedly perpetrating a false narrative over the US Agency for International Development's alleged funding of $21 million to India for 'voter turnout' and blamed the ruling party and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh for "destabilising Congress governments in past." The BJP had previously alleged that the Congress party took foreign aid to destablise the Narendra Modi-led government.
Referring to the Anna Hazare movement in 2011 which swung the 2014 elections in favour of the BJP, the Congress party asked that is it not a fact that RSS orchestrated the Anna Hazare and Arvind Kejriwal-led India Against Corruption movement to overthrow the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government with the help of foreign aid, especially from USAID, and funding from Ford Foundation?
"Is it not true that Kejriwal himself had accepted this? Why did Anna Hazare get a rousing reception in New York after successfully completing the task assigned by the RSS? Why were US senators and Congressmen so pleased to see Anna Hazare," Congress leader and party's media and publicity department Chairman Pawan Khera said at a press conference.
Slamming the BJP for spreading lies, the Congress leader referred to a media report which stated that the $21 million USAID funds' were not given to India, but to Bangladesh. "Modi ji's best friend Trump had perhaps intentionally or unintentionally made a faux pas through the DOGE. But the fact that the RSS-BJP ecosystem shamelessly latched on it, without examining the facts, tells you that they wanted to hide their own acts of COMMISSIONS in damaging India's DEMOCRACY," Khera said.
"For the past week, a story has been running that USAID gave $21 million to destabilize the Narendra Modi government. If despite having so many security agencies, Modi government allowed $21 million to enter India, then it is a matter of shame. At the same time, when Modi government was asked a question about this, they said that this money came in 2012 during the UPA regime. In such a situation, did BJP win in 2014 with this money?" Khera asked.
In a direct attack at PM Modi, Khera asked why Modi was visiting the US in 1993, when he was an ordinary RSS worker, and holding meetings with the American Council of Young Political Leaders which was practically funded by the USAID.
The Congress party also took a jibe at the Prime Minister's US visit earlier this month. "Narendra Modi went to America and came back after hearing Trump's threat. Trump said, will impose tariff on India - Modi was smiling. Trump thrusts junk F35 jets on India - Modi was smiling," Khera said. He further added that Modi is tarnishing the reputation of the country by maintaining a one-sided relationship with US President Donald Trump.
The controversy over the $21 million USAID funding erupted after US President Trump alleged that the agency had spent the amount to influence voter turnout in India to "get somebody else elected". Speaking at a public event in Miami on Wednesday, Trump had questioned the rationale behind the USAID, the agency which administers US foreign aid, funding voter turnout in India.
"What do we need to spend $21 million for voter turnout in India? Wow, 21 million dollars! I guess they were trying to get somebody else elected. We've got to tell the Indian government...," Trump said.
Following Trump's remarks, BJP leader Amit Malviya said on X, formerly Twitter, that the US president had confirmed that there was indeed an attempt to influence the Indian election and install someone other than Prime Minister Modi. He also said that PM Modi had raised these concerns in the run-up to the Lok Sabha elections last year. End
US$1 = INR 86.71
Reported by Kuldeep Singh
Edited by Tanima Banerjee
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