'Death warrant for farmers': Rahul Gandhi escalates attack on India-US trade deal framework

At a Kisan Mahachaupal in Punjab, the Congress leader alleges the framework will hurt farmers and MSMEs and questions tariff concessions.

• Rahul Gandhi: India-US trade deal is a "death warrant" for farmers
• He claims US pressure made Modi lower import tariffs.
• Congress says the deal harms Indian farmers and MSMEs

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Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi on Saturday criticised the India-US trade deal framework, calling it a “death warrant” for farmers and micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).

Addressing the Congress’ Kisan Mahachaupal in Barnala, Punjab, Gandhi said Prime Minister Narendra Modi had agreed to the framework under pressure from US President Donald Trump.

“What was the pressure that the Prime Minister of India signed a death warrant for our country there. He signed a death warrant for our farmers. He gave away our data. He signed a death warrant for our small and medium industries,” Gandhi said.

He alleged that the Prime Minister was being pressured by the United States, referring to files related to Jeffrey Epstein and a criminal case filed in the US against Gautam Adani. “America and Donald Trump are threatening Narendra Modi. They are saying that, if you do not sign, then we will open this,” Gandhi said.

Gandhi said India’s agreement to levy zero or low tariffs on certain US agricultural and industrial imports would hurt domestic farmers.

“PM Narendra Modi has opened the door of the agricultural sector. Farmers in Himachal, Punjab, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Odisha are going to be ruined. American goods will flow in, and our farmers will be ruined,” he said.

He added that no Prime Minister could open the agricultural sector and questioned the circumstances under which the framework was agreed.

Under the framework, India agreed to eliminate or reduce tariffs on US industrial goods and a range of agricultural products, including dried distillers’ grains (DDGs), red sorghum for animal feed, tree nuts, fresh and processed fruits, soybean oil, wine and spirits, and other items.

As part of the arrangement, the United States was to levy a reciprocal tariff rate of 18 percent. Following a US court verdict, President Trump later announced a global tariff rate of 15 percent.

The Congress party has been organising farmer conventions in multiple states, including Madhya Pradesh and Kerala, to criticise the trade framework. The Barnala event in Punjab is part of that campaign.

Congress leaders have described the agreement as compromising India’s agricultural and MSME interests. The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party has not responded to Gandhi’s remarks in the material provided.

The interim trade framework between India and the United States follows negotiations aimed at resolving tariff disputes and expanding market access for industrial and agricultural goods.

The agreement includes commitments on tariff reduction by India on selected US imports and reciprocal tariff adjustments by the US.

The issue of agricultural market access has historically been sensitive in India, given the sector’s employment base and political significance. MSMEs constitute a substantial share of India’s manufacturing and export ecosystem.