KARACHI: The Indian National Congress on Tuesday criticised the Narendra Modi government for the trade deal struck with the United States, calling on the BJP government to take the nation into confidence about details of the deal.

United States President Donald Trump announced a “trade deal” with India on Monday after speaking to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying New Delhi agreed to stop buying Russian oil and may purchase it instead from Venezuela.

Interestingly, the Kremlin said it had not received any indication from India that it would stop buying Russian oil following the announcement of a trade deal with President Trump.

“So far, we haven’t heard any statements from New Delhi on this matter,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. “Just like the ceasefire, the announcement of the trade deal was also made by US President Trump. It has been stated that the trade deal is being done ‘on Modi’s request’,” the Congress said in a post on social media platform X on Tuesday.

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh compares Modi’s stance on deal to his ‘surrender’ during Pakistan-India conflict last year

It slammed the move to reduce tariff and non-tariff barriers against the US to zero, saying, “It seems India has agreed to completely open our market for America. This will impact Indian industry, traders and farmers.”

It also questioned whether the security and interests of Indian farmers had been ensured amid talk of opening the agriculture sector to the US, and whether the Modi government had agreed to the condition stated by Trump that it would no longer buy Russian oil. “In addition, there is talk of buying more goods from America. If that’s the case, then what happened to ‘Make in India’?” the post added.

“India has the right to know details of the trade deal. The Modi government must take the Parliament and the entire country into confidence and share all the details.”

American colony

The Kerala chapter of Congress also slammed the move in briefer terms, saying, “Simply put, we will be an American colony.” It pointed out that the US would still have a tariff of 18pc on Indian goods, while India would charge zero tariffs on American goods.

“Resign and get lost,” it said bluntly, addressing Modi.

In a separate post, the opposition party also called the deal “the lowest moment” for India and criticised Modi’s apparent bowing down to Trump.

“Modi surrendered India’s sovereignty to the US to keep his friend and himself out of jail,” it said, apparently referring to businessman and Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani.

The Congress said, “This is the lowest moment for the country. Complete surrender without even fighting!”

Congress member Jairam Ramesh compared Modi’s stance now to his “surrender” during the Pakistan-India conflict in May 2025.

He said that while India-US relations had appeared bright at the start of Trump’s re-election, things had gone “downhill” ever since the US president’s halting of Operation Sindoor on May 10.

“From the information President Trump has provided, it is abundantly clear that Prime Minister Modi has — like he did on May 10, 2025 — completely surrendered. He has most definitely appeased President Trump,” Ramesh said, adding, “India stands diminished by this unfortunate sequence of events.”

He called for both the EU and US trade deals to be laid on the table of both Houses and debated.

Congress member Supriya Shrinate expressed concern over the “deeply worrying” reaction of US Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins to the announcement, in which she said the deal would “export more American farm products to India’s massive market, lifting prices, and pumping cash into rural America”.

Minister defends deal

On the other hand, India’s External Affairs Minister Dr S. Jaishankar welcomed the trade deal, claiming that it would create more jobs, spur growth and promote innovation in both economies. “It will strengthen ‘Make in India’ endeavors and encourage trusted technology ties,” he said on X.

Published in Dawn, February 4th, 2026