After the US Supreme Court declared the reciprocal tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump invalid, Congress on Saturday asked the government to put the interim trade agreement on hold and reconsider the terms of the agreement.
Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh said that the government should also ensure that the interests of Indian farmers are completely protected during the reconsideration and the government should not allow any kind of import liberalization on the American side.
Congress leader asked sharp questions to the government
Ramesh questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s silence on the entire agreement and said he should clarify whether he agrees with Trump’s statement that nothing has changed in the trade agreement with India.
The Congress leader asked, “Does Modi agree with Trump that the trade agreement with India is still in force?” He also said that there has been no response from the government yet.
He claimed that the India-US interim agreement will adversely affect Indian farmers and put their livelihoods at risk. He said the government should put the deal on hold until it gets clarification and called for fresh negotiations on the agreement. The Congress leader said, “The decision of the US Supreme Court is very important and our government should keep this trade deal on hold for now.”
Agreement with America is a threat to the livelihood of our farmers
Ramesh said, “We demand that the Prime Minister clearly state that India’s policy will be reviewed after the US Supreme Court’s decision and we will not adopt the stance of import liberalization until the clarification comes.” He further said that this is to protect and safeguard the livelihood of lakhs of farmers of the country.
He also mentioned the special concessions given to American agricultural products and said that these are a threat to the livelihood of our farmers. He said the trade agreement mentions that tariffs on agricultural products including cotton, soybeans and fruits will be reduced or eliminated completely. The Congress leader also questioned the haste shown by the Modi government regarding the trade agreement announced by Trump on February 2.