Congress, BJP clash over funding, electoral interference claims

The Congress and the BJP on Monday continued to spar over the remarks made by US President Donald Trump regarding USAID’s funding to India.

While the Congress said the latest annual report of the Finance Ministry had disclosed that the agency funded seven projects worth $750 million in 2023-24 in partnership with the Centre, the BJP accused the Congress of ‘desperation’.

AICC general secretary for communications, Jairam Ramesh, said, “The Finance Ministry has thoroughly exposed the lies of the PM and his ‘jhoot’ brigade, including his dapper External Affairs Minister. As per the ministry’s annual report for 2023-24, USAID is implementing seven projects in collaboration with the Government of India, with a combined budget of around $750 million. None of these projects has to do with voter turnout. All of them are with and through the Centre.”

According to the report for FY 2023-24, an obligation of a total of $97 million (about Rs 825 crore) has been made by the USAID under the seven projects focused on agriculture, forest and climate adaptation, water and sanitation, renewable energy, health and disaster management.

Hitting back, BJP leader Amit Malviya said the desperation of the Congress and its ecosystem to deflect from the controversial USAID funding, routed through various George Soros-linked fronts and a labyrinth of NGO structures to meddle with India’s electoral process, is a dead giveaway.

“It is now obvious who the beneficiaries are. However, let us be clear — the USAID projects in question are official government-to-government partnerships, transparently executed as Externally Aided Projects. The Centre simply channels these funds to states for development,” Malviya said.

“This isn’t new—even the 2014-15 report confirms the same. The question is: why is the Congress defending covert interference by foreign donors and organisations linked to George Soros, which seek to destabilise our democracy under the guise of philanthropy? India’s sovereignty is not up for sale,” the BJP said.