Goyal Dismisses Rahul Gandhi's Trade Deal Claims as 'Baseless' and Misleading
Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal launched a sharp rebuttal early Friday against Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, categorically rejecting his allegations regarding the India-United States trade agreement as "baseless" and asserting that Gandhi "has no concern for Bharat." Goyal emphasized that the trade pact comprehensively safeguards the interests of Indian farmers.
Minister's Strong Social Media Response
In a detailed post on social media platform X, Goyal accused Rahul Gandhi of habitual falsehoods. "Rahul Gandhi is a habitual liar... and has no concern for Bharat," Goyal stated. "In a video released today, he has broken all records of speaking falsehood and made baseless allegations. He is misleading our farmers with his fake narrative and trying to provoke them."
Goyal further added, "He has never cared for our motherland nor can we expect him to ever work for a strong and prosperous future for India."
Defending the Trade Agreement's Provisions
Vigorously defending the bilateral trade pact, Goyal highlighted Prime Minister Narendra Modi's consistent empathy toward farmers. "Prime Minister Narendra Modi has always been empathetic towards our farmers. He has always put the interest of farmers first and taken all decisions to ensure their prosperity," Goyal affirmed.
Regarding the specifics of the deal, Goyal explained, "In the recent trade deal with the United States of America, the interests of farmers have been kept paramount and fully protected... The US trade deal will benefit our farmers with higher export of farm output and increased demand leading to higher prices and continuous prosperity of our farmers."
He also stressed a critical safeguard: the agreement, which reduces tariffs on Indian exports to 18%, explicitly does not touch sensitive agriculture and dairy sectors, ensuring domestic market protection.
Context: Rahul Gandhi's Parliamentary Allegations
Goyal's remarks came in direct response to Rahul Gandhi's intensified attack on the central government on Thursday. Gandhi had alleged that the US agreement "betrays our food security and farmers" and claimed that PM Modi opened India's agriculture market because US President Donald Trump "has him by the throat."
In a video posted on X, Rahul Gandhi declared, "Narendra Modi ji has sold the country, sold the farmers. File a case against me, abuse, do whatever you want to do, privilege motion if you want to file, file it, it doesn't matter, I have spoken the truth in Parliament, if you don't like the truth, that's another matter, the country understands the truth, do whatever you want to do, I stand with farmers; Congress president Kharge ji and the entire Congress party, all our workers stand with farmers, we will not let this injustice happen."
Additional Criticism from Agriculture Minister
In a separate development, Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan also criticized Rahul Gandhi on social media. Chouhan stated, "Rahul Gandhi is a liar and has nothing to do with the interests of the farmers... He consistently speaks against the nation's interests."
Chouhan added, "He has broken all records of lying. He wants to mislead the nation. PM Modi has always taken decisions in the best interests of the farmers... The farmers are totally protected under the Indo-US trade agreement."
The exchange underscores the ongoing political debate over international trade agreements and their perceived impact on India's agricultural sector, with government ministers firmly rejecting opposition claims as unfounded and politically motivated.
