Data India’s ‘petrol’ in AI war, says Rahul Gandhi, questions PM Modi's autonomy

Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi

• Rahul Gandhi: AI revolution brings risks and opportunities for India's IT sector
• He criticizes PM Modi for giving up India's data leverage in digital trade deals.
• Foreign tech firms dominate India's data, risking control and profit loss.

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Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said AI revolution is bringing both “threats and opportunities”.

In a post on X, the Congress leader said, “Our IT and services sector, a shining star of our economy, is at risk, and thousands of software engineers and professionals will lose their livelihoods if we do not prepare for the storm that is coming. But we have opportunities too.”

According to Gandhi, data is the petrol which fuels the AI engine.

During his address at the Lok Sabha on Wednesday, Gandhi called the Indian data the most valuable asset amid US and China rivalry.

“As I said in parliament, India’s greatest asset is our brilliant people - and the enormous data we create. In a few days, the government is hosting a grand AI Summit. It should have been an opportunity for India to assert leadership - to demonstrate how a country of 1.4 billion people can use our data to shape the global AI future ON OUR OWN TERMS,” he said in his X post.

The AI revolution is here - bringing both threats and opportunities. Our IT and services sector, a shining star of our economy, is at risk, and thousands of software engineers and professionals will lose their livelihoods if we do not prepare for the storm that is coming. But…

— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) February 11, 2026

He also accused the Centre of compromising India’s leverage in digital trade negotiations. “Instead, a helpless PM Modi, has surrendered to the US ‘chokehold’ in the trade deal. Under the pretext of ‘clearing barriers to digital trade’, every move to use our data for our own benefit will be opposed,” said Gandhi.

He argued that foreign technology companies already dominate India’s data ecosystem. “Already, large foreign companies enjoy a near monopoly on our data through Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Youtube, Amazon, Android, etc. With this deal, India will struggle to⁠⁠ safely store the data of 1.5 billion Indians in India, get transparency in their source codes and algorithms, and tax the profits they make using our data. It’s a shame that our PM has been pressured to hand over India’s prime resource to a foreign power,” he said.