NEW DELHI: Leader of opposition Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday launched a sharp attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, accusing him of “surrendering” under “pressure” and contrasted his leadership with that of former prime minister Indira Gandhi.Gandhi’s remarks came a day after US President Donald Trump, speaking at the House GOP Member Retreat, claimed that PM Modi had sought an audience with him. “Prime Minister Modi came to see me, ‘Sir, may I see you please’. Yes,” Trump said.
Trump also referred to India facing steep tariffs, saying New Delhi was “paying a lot of tariffs now” and had “reduced” the purchase of Russian oil “substantially”.Gandhi shared a video message on X with the caption “Fark samjho sirji”.“I know these BJP–RSS people very well now. Put a little pressure on them, give them a little push and they run away in fear,” Gandhi said. “As soon as Trump signalled from there, they picked up the phone and said, ‘What are you doing Modi ji?’ Narendra surrendered and with ‘yes sir’, Narendra Modi ji followed Trump’s signal.”Drawing a comparison with the 1971 war, Gandhi said India had once stood firm despite US pressure. “You might remember a time when the phone call didn’t come — the Seventh Fleet had come. In the 1971 war, the Seventh Fleet came, weapons came, an aircraft carrier came. Indira Gandhi ji said, ‘I will do what I have to do.’ This is the difference,” he said, referring to the United States Seventh Fleet.Trump has imposed tariffs totalling 50% on Indian exports, including a 25% levy linked to India’s procurement of Russian oil.“I have a very good relationship with him. He’s not that happy with me because they’re paying a lot of tariffs now because they’re not doing the oil — but they are, they’ve now reduced it very substantially,” Trump said.The tariffs, imposed in August, have triggered multiple rounds of trade talks and at least four conversations between the two leaders, but have yet to yield a bilateral trade deal.Separately, Trump also said in his remarks that India had flagged delays in the delivery of Apache helicopters, claiming New Delhi has been waiting for the aircraft for five years.
