BJP leaders countered Rahul Gandhi’s claims that the India-US trade deal would hurt both cotton farmers and textile exporters, accusing him of misleading the farmers and spreading propaganda against the trade deal.
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The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Saturday hit back at Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi over his remarks on the India-US trade deal, accusing him of trying to “mislead” the farmers by spreading “propaganda” against the agreement.
The Congress leader, in a video statement, had accused the Narendra Modi-led Centre of agreeing to a trade deal that would hurt both the cotton farmers and textile exporters.
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Reacting to Gandhi’s remarks, Union Minister Giriraj Singh said that the Opposition party and its leader, Rahul Gandhi of spreading rumours and making baseless claims regarding the India-US trade agreement.
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“Congress and Rahul Gandhi are spreading rumours in the country, particularly regarding farmers, but these are baseless claims under the pretext of the US trade deal. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has clearly stated that as long as he is in office, any deal, whether domestic or international, will be in the interest of the farmers, and no one will act against them,” Singh told reporters in Patna.
BJP national spokesperson Sehzad Poonwalla also mounted the attack on Rahul Gandhi, calling him “Leader of Propaganda” and “modern-day Pinochhio”.
“Lying is in his nature, and he is a ‘Supreme Court Certified’ liar…,” Poonawalla said.
The BJP leader further stated that during its rule, the Congress-led UPA could not sign even a single good trade agreement, accusing the Opposition party of compromising the interests of farmers.
“Today, that Congress party is raising questions on this deal, even though the interests of our farmers have been fully protected,” he said.
The BJP spokesperson also took a dig at the Congress, saying that the party used to do “Family Trade Agreement instead of Free Trade Agreement.”
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What prompted the BJP’s sharp attack on Rahul
The BJP attack on Rahul Gandhi came hours after he issued a video statement, accusing the Narendra Modi government of cheating the cotton farmers and the textile exporters, claiming the India-US trade deal would hurt both.
Rahul claimed that the US gave a zero-tariff concession to Bangladesh for textile exports on the condition that the country would import cotton from US farmers. According to Rahul Gandhi, Bangladesh, a large importer of Indian cotton, has hinted at stopping the purchase of cotton from India after its deal with the US.
However, the US has imposed 18 per cent tariffs on Indian textile exports, making it difficult for the exporters to compete with Bangladeshi exporters who will be paying zero tariffs.
“Why was this fact hidden from the country till now?” Rahul asked as he slammed the US policy of imposing tariffs and granting concessions. “Is this really any kind of choice — or is it a trap designed to push us into a ‘well in front, ditch behind’ situation?”
The LoP highlighted that both outcomes will hurt Indian interests. “If we import American cotton, our own farmers will be ruined. If we don’t import it, our textile industry will lag behind and get destroyed,” he added.
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