Saturday 12 April 2025
What’s the update: India Sets the Record Straight, $21 Million in USAID Funds Allocated to Bangladesh
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In a contentious claim, former President Trump asserted that $21 million of USAID was designated for elections in India, sparking significant political backlash. However, the Indian Finance Ministry clarified that the funds were part of a broader $750 million for 7 projects in India, with the $21 million specifically allocated to Bangladesh.
On February 16, Elon Musk led Department of Government Efficiency, posted a list on Platform X that mentioned India getting $21 Million for voter turnout in the elections.
The claim was given a high by President Trump he discredited USAID for its global development programs by speaking against it on several occasions.
During a speech in Miami,Trumpsatirically said, What do we need to spend $21m for voter turnout inIndiafor? Wow, $21m. I guess they were trying to get somebody else elected.
On the very next day, Trump commented on the allegations again by saying, $21 million was going to my friend Prime Minister Modi in India for voter turnout, he kept on making comments by calling it a Kickback scheme, also saying, They take advantage of us pretty good,
India came under political turmoil because of the American claims, Bhartiya Janata Party criticized the foreign influence and counter-accused the foreign factors of influencing Indian elections, on the other hand, the Congress Party accused the BJP (The ruling party) of spreading misinformation. The spread of this news raised questions about the electoral integrity of India.
BJP leader Amit Malviya, head of the IT Cell, stated that Trump’s claims confirmed there was an attempt to influence the Indian election and to install someone other than Prime Minister Modi.
Shocked the democratic process of this country was sought to be manipulated to dent the purity of our electoral system, said the Indian vice president Jagdeep Shankar.
Congresss spokesperson Jairam Ramesh, on the other hand, called Musks claim fake and said that Trump got confused between Dhaka and Delhi, He also questioned: The BJP should just answer this: Why did the BJP spread fake news about Indias democracy?
S. Jaishankar, the External Affairs Minister, said that USAID operates in India in good faith and any suggestions that it interfered in the electoral matters are concerning, the Ministry of External Affairs found it deeply troubling.
A report by Indian Express revealed that the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) did not allocate any funds to the Indian government for any purpose. Instead, the report indicated that $21 million was allocated to Bangladesh for political engagement.
The report also highlighted thatUSAIDcontributed $750 million to seven projects in India, focusing on sectors such as health, water, sanitation, disaster management, food security, agriculture, and renewable energy. However, according to a Moneycontrol report, more than one-fifth of the USAID funding in India was received in the last four years, totaling $650 million.
The aid relationship between USAID and India began with development projects in 1951. According to PTI, USAID has spent approximately $17 billion on around 555 projects across various sectors in India.
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