NEW DELHI: Commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal on Wednesday strongly rebutted Congress leader Jairam Ramesh’s criticism of the India-European Union free trade agreement (FTA), questioning the opposition’s credibility and defending the pact as a landmark, win-win economic deal that could unlock major growth and employment opportunities for India.Responding to an X post by Ramesh that termed the FTA “hugely hyped” and raised concerns over trade deficits, Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), automobiles, intellectual property and refined fuel exports, Goyal described the criticism as politically motivated and disconnected from economic realities.
“Is this a story of ‘Sour grapes’?” Goyal asked, adding that those who failed to take decisions when in power were now “making a virtue of not doing anything”. He said India had paid a “heavy cost” for the suspension of FTA talks between 2013 and 2022, including lost jobs, income and growth.Rejecting claims that the agreement was over-sold, Goyal said the scale of the pact spoke for itself. “When the whole world is calling it the ‘mother of all deals’, my friend thinks it is hugely hyped,” he said, pointing to the combined GDP of $25 trillion, global trade of $11 trillion and a common market of nearly two billion people. He added that tariff elimination on $33 billion worth of India’s labour-intensive exports from day one could not be dismissed as hype. Ramesh, in his post, had argued that the FTA represents “the biggest trade opening India has given to any trade partner”, with tariff reductions on over 96 per cent of EU exports to India, and warned that it could double imports from the bloc, widening the trade deficit. He flagged the lack of an exemption for India’s aluminium and steel exports from the EU’s CBAM, noting that exports in these sectors had already declined from $7 billion to $5 billion and could fall further after CBAM’s enforcement from January 1, 2026.Goyal countered this by saying the government had engaged proactively on CBAM and other sensitive issues. “I can say with confidence that our Government has taken up the issue of CBAM… and identified pathways to find solutions,” he said, stressing dialogue and cooperation rather than rigid positions.Addressing concerns on regulatory barriers, Goyal said health and safety regulations were preserved under the agreement and disciplined to prevent unjustified trade restrictions. On intellectual property, he said obligations were aligned with WTO’s TRIPS framework, emphasising public health flexibilities, technology transfer, recognition of India’s traditional digital knowledge library, and preservation of India’s data exclusivity policy. On services, where Ramesh alleged the EU had sought privileged access beyond India’s commitments with other partners, Goyal said commitments remained within India’s domestic regime and could attract EU investment and innovation in sectors such as maritime and financial services. The minister also defended the inclusion of automobiles in the FTA, a key concern raised by the Congress leader, particularly for domestic manufacturers and the emerging electric vehicle (EV) industry. Goyal said India’s offer was quota-based, focused on the premium segment and phased, with a five-year lag for EVs. Liberalising CKD imports, he said, would encourage European OEMs to set up local assembly lines, moving from importing to full localisation and strengthening the Make in India ecosystem. Responding to questions on refined fuel exports – India’s largest export to the EU – Goyal said the issue was linked to extraneous factors and that the trade agreement was a long-term strategic engagement based on trust and mutual respect.“I only hope my friend will shed this negative and pessimistic approach… Let’s work to open opportunities for them, rather than act as roadblocks in their quest for prosperity,” Goyal said.India and the EU began FTA negotiations in 2007, completing 16 rounds before talks were suspended in 2013 over unresolved issues. Negotiations resumed in June 2022 and were finalised and announced on Tuesday, 18-years after it all began.
