• Adv. Rajiv Sharma

It is a well-known fact that civil as well as criminal cases of a serious nature have been going on against businessman Gautam Adani on charges of fraud and bribery in a Federal Court of the US in New York. It is also well-known that due to Adani’s proximity to PM Narendra Modi, the government of India did not serve the court summons on Adani, on one pretext or another, for more than a year. Frustrated at the lack of cooperation by the government of India, the US Court allowed alternate modes of service by bypassing the government route. Finally, when the court summons were served on Gautam Adani and his nephew on 30 January 2026, panic gripped the BJP. Diplomatic channels of India began efforts to save Adani at any cost.

In the meantime, another development had taken place on 19 November 2025. US President Donald Trump signed legislation providing for the public release of material related to Jeffrey Epstein, a criminal who was sentenced to undergo imprisonment of 1.5 years in 2008 on charges of child prostitution. He was later re-arrested in July 2019 on much more serious charges. When some documents from the Epstein files were released recently, the names of PM Narendra Modi, Minister Hardeep Puri, and businessman Anil Ambani appeared therein. Although the government of India immediately trashed the revelation about PM Modi, the panic that had set in Modi camp was discernible. Some rumours hinting at more such revelations were enough to cause stress and anxiety in the top echelons of the BJP.

It is against this background that PM Modi called President Trump, and a completely one-sided trade deal was hurriedly signed between the two countries on 03 February 2026. It appears that from now on, India’s vital strategic interests, its financial planning, and strategies to ensure energy security could be manipulated by the USA. As the people of the country are learning that the trade deal carries ominous portents for our economy, trade, industries, agriculture, and the country’s sovereign power to take independent decisions, the Union government and the commerce minister have been issuing false and misleading statements to justify it. But the Indo-US joint statement released on 7 February 2026 in the USA, which is termed a framework of the interim agreement, has effectively nailed their blatant lies.

There are many contentious points in the trade deal. India’s agricultural sector has been thrown open to unbridled imports of a wide range of agricultural products from the USA. The deal imposes restrictions on the sovereign right of India to independently import oil and gas from a country of its own choice. Once the deal comes into effect, the USA will get the right to oversee and monitor India’s oil imports. Such strong-arm tactics were hitherto employed by big powers over weak countries and so-called banana republics like Pakistan or Venezuela. But that a sovereign, strong, and self-respecting country like India could also be subjected to such a treatment was unthinkable, thus far. Further, the tariff differential between the US and India is loaded so heavily in favour of the US that it hurts the self-esteem and pride of the Indian people. Not only this, India has been forced to increase its US imports from the present $40 billion to $100 billion a year for the next 5 years.

In the very first clause of the Indo-US joint statement, India has allowed the USA to dump a ‘wide range of agricultural products’ here at reduced or no tariff. Although a few agricultural products like nuts, fresh fruits, and soybean oil are mentioned as examples of importable items, the language of this clause clearly elucidates that American exports will not be limited to such items only. Even when the Union government is desperately trying to mislead the country on this issue, the language of the clause implies that America will be able to export almost any of its agricultural produce to India. When this happens, it will irreversibly and irrevocably destroy the farm sector in India, which employs nearly 60% of the Indian population.

Another point that causes concern is that India has agreed to stop buying discounted oil from Russia and also from Iran. President Trump has asked India to buy expensive US or Venezuelan oil from now on. Further, US agencies will monitor whether India has stopped buying oil from Russia. If not, the USA may take punitive action in terms of increased tariffs on exports from India. Such terms are extremely derogatory and insulting for a sovereign, self-reliant country like India. As stated above, this is an attack on the sovereign right of India to take its own decisions, keeping national interest in view. This cannot be tolerated.

While Indian exporters will have to pay a tariff of 18% on goods exported to the USA, American goods imported into India will be liable to pay zero or negligible tariff. Being highly discriminatory, it is insulting for a country of 1.4 billion people. It is noteworthy that during Vajpayee’s tenure, the tariff on Indian exports to the USA was only 3.31%. It was decreased to 2.93% during Dr Manmohan Singh’s rule. In fact, up to July 2025, the tariff on Indian exports to the USA remained around 3 to 4%. But from August, the tariff was unilaterally increased to 25% by the USA, and now, after the new trade deal, it has been decreased to 18%. Hence, if we take 31 July 2025 as a cut-off date, the net tariff has actually increased with the signing of the deal from 4% to 18%. One fails to understand why PM Modi and his ministers are celebrating the net increase in the tariff as compared to that prevailing until July 2025.

Further, India has expressed its unilateral intention to import $500 billion of US energy products, aircraft and aircraft parts, precious metals, technology products, and cooking coal over the next five years. At present, total Indian imports from the USA are in the range of $40 billion. Increasing it to $100 billion a year is going to put tremendous strain on India’s trade balance, especially when the USA has made no commitment on the value of the goods they intend to import from India.

Thus far, no Prime Minister of the country has ever succumbed to American pressure. But Prime Minister Modi is the first Prime Minister who has consistently undermined India’s interests when it comes to dealing with the USA, especially under President Trump. There are many indicators that point towards the vulnerability of the Prime Minister. The extreme hurry in which the framework of the interim trade deal was signed on 03 February 2026 is also one such pointer.

India was offered the same, if not a somewhat better, deal in July 2025 by the USA. But the government did not accept it then, simply because it was heavily loaded against India’s interests. Everyone in the country believed that the government took the right decision then.

The government refused to succumb in July 2025 because the situation at that point in time was qualitatively different. There was no question of any leaks from the Epstein files at that time, as the law to reveal its contents was enacted only in November 2025. As regards the Adani fraud and bribery case, it was at a preliminary stage and did not look as damaging as it looks today.

On 30 January 2026, summons from a US Court were served on Gautam Adani, marking the beginning of the trial. That was a bolt from the blue. A day later, the US Justice Department released Epstein emails, which contained a reference to PM Modi. That clinched the issue. The trade deal was signed just 3 days later.

The author is a General Secretary and Chief Spokesperson, Chandigarh Territorial Congress Committee.