India, Feb 07 : India’s newly announced interim trade agreement with the United States has triggered sharp political reactions, with Opposition leaders arguing that the pact may tilt economic advantages toward Washington while constraining New Delhi’s strategic choices.
Senior Congress MP and former Union minister Jairam Ramesh took a swipe at the government, remarking that “Namaste Trump has won while Howdy Modi has lost,” invoking the high profile outreach events held during bilateral visits by the two leaders. He said that although the joint statement lacks granular detail, early indications raise several concerns.
According to Ramesh, one major implication appears to be restrictions on India’s ability to continue purchasing Russian oil without risking punitive tariffs. He also suggested that the agreement could require India to lower or scrap duties on American agricultural goods, potentially increasing imports and shifting the current trade surplus into a deficit. He further pointed to the absence of clarity on the IT and services sector and warned that export duties on Indian products may rise.
The Congress leader maintained that the arrangement seems aligned more closely with US economic interests, adding that a clearer assessment would be possible once the full contours of the pact are made public.
Echoing similar apprehensions, Aam Aadmi Party MP Sanjay Singh cautioned against weakening ties with long-standing partners such as Russia. He argued that relying heavily on American supplies despite India’s strong domestic production in sectors like coal—warrants scrutiny, and called for transparency regarding who stands to benefit from the agreement.
The reactions came shortly after both countries issued a joint statement outlining the interim framework. Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal is expected to brief the media with further details.
Under the proposed arrangement, India is set to reduce or eliminate tariffs on a broad range of US industrial products and several agricultural items, including animal feed ingredients, nuts, fruits, soybean oil, wine and spirits.
In return, Washington will impose a reciprocal tariff rate of 18 percent on select Indian exports such as textiles, leather goods, plastics, organic chemicals, handicrafts and certain machinery. Following the finalisation of the interim pact, the US has also committed to removing tariffs on products like generic medicines, gems and diamonds, and aircraft components, while rolling back duties earlier applied on some aviation related imports.
As negotiations continue toward a comprehensive bilateral trade agreement, the interim framework is expected to shape the next phase of economic engagement between the two countries even as political debate over its long-term impact gathers momentum.