New Delhi, Feb 14 (IANS) The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Saturday mounted a sharp counterattack against Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi over his criticism of the India-US trade agreement, alleging that he is attempting to “mislead” the country’s farmers by spreading “propaganda” against the deal.
The reaction came after Rahul Gandhi launched a strong critique of the Centre over the trade pact with the United States, claiming that the agreement would “destroy” India’s textile sector and severely impact cotton farmers.
In a video message posted on X, the Congress leader asserted that millions of livelihoods linked to textiles and cotton cultivation were at risk due to the deal.
Gandhi argued that the tariff structure under the agreement placed India at a disadvantage when compared to Bangladesh, suggesting that the disparity would hurt Indian industry and farmers alike.
Responding to his remarks, BJP leaders and allies accused him of deliberately distorting facts. Several party figures described him as the “Leader of Propaganda” and even a “Supreme Court-certified liar”.
Union Minister Giriraj Singh, speaking to reporters in Patna, said, “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.”
He further added that Rahul Gandhi has “lied multiple times and later apologised in court,” and cited the Naravane book row as an example, where the publisher dismissed the LoP’s claims.
BJP national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla, speaking to IANS, intensified the attack, saying, “Rahul Gandhi is Leader of Propaganda; he is like the modern-day Pinocchio; lying is in his nature, and he is a ‘Supreme Court Certified’ liar... The UPA government couldn’t manage even a single good free trade agreement and compromised the interests of our farmers... Today, that Congress party is raising questions on this deal, even though the interests of our farmers have been fully protected.”
He also took a swipe at the previous Congress-led government, saying, “These people (Congress) used to do Family Trade Agreement instead of Free Trade Agreement.”
BJP National Spokesperson Tuhin Sinha also criticised the Congress leader, stating, “Today, Rahul Gandhi has once again indulged in deception and misinformation. Every day, he fabricates false narratives on some new issue. In the past eight days, he first spread falsehoods regarding General Naravane’s book; when that was exposed, he moved to another topic -- the trade deal... Now, the false claims he is making about the trade deal are not only mischievous but also against the interests of the nation.”
Janata Dal (United) leaders also came out in support of the Centre. JD(U) national spokesperson Rajiv Ranjan said, “I feel that people are unclear about Rahul Ji’s views on India’s development and the concept of relations between the two countries.”
“Our strategy can be seen as a major success with the India-US trade deal. This trade deal is expected to benefit Indian producers, encourage new enterprises, and expand infrastructure, giving a boost to the Indian economy.”
JD(U) spokesperson Neeraj Kumar alleged that the Congress leader was politicising the issue.
“Rahul Gandhi is indulging in political propaganda... The farmers of this country are sensitive. Their connection to the land has always been deep,” he said.
Shiv Sena leader Shaina NC also criticised Gandhi’s remarks, telling IANS, “Rahul Gandhi doesn’t know anything about the India-US deal because he didn’t read the decisions taken by our government. Each and every decision is for the benefit of the farmers. Each and every decision is for the benefit of Make in India.”
--IANS
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