Rahul Gandhi slams Govt over India-US commerce deal: ‘No Indian PM, together with Mr Modi, would signal it’

Budget Session: Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, on Wednesday, said that Indian data is the most important factor in India’s equation with the United States of America. The Congress leader claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi ‘choked’ in front of the United States, and that one can see the fear in his eyes.

“If the INDIA alliance was negotiating with President Trump. I will tell you what we would say. The first thing we would say to President Trump is that the most important thing in this equation is Indian data. You want to protect dollar, we are your friends. And we appreciate you and help you protect dollar. The biggest asset for that is Indian people,” he said.

Rahul Gandhi spoke in the Lok Sabha for over 45 minutes on the Budget 2026. Earlier in the day, the leaders of the Congress party walked out of the Lok Sabha, following protests over the refusal of the Chair, PC Mohan, to allow them to raise certain questions during the Question Hour.

“Not your servants. Second thing we would say, Mr Trump, please understand. Our energy security is our energy security. Third is we understand your voter base is farmers. But we will also protect our farmers. But the main thing I am saying is that the INDIA bloc government will go and say data is our biggest strength. We will go there as equals. And we will not be made equal to Pakistan,” Gandhi said.

‘There was a chokehold on him’

Gandhi hit out at the Centre, saying that the Indian government has fully surrendered to the US. “The point is that I don’t believe that an Indian PM, including Mr Modi, would sign the deal unless there was a chokehold on him,” he said in the House.

The Rae Bareli MP argued in the Lok Sabha that “Indian data” is the country’s most strategic asset in an increasingly unstable global order, claiming it could play a decisive role in the geopolitical contest between the United States and China.

Gandhi sparked a row in the House when he said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi choked in front of the United States, and that one could see the fear in his eyes.

“The interesting thing is that I know that PM won’t sell India under normal circumstances. He has sold India because they are choking him. I said when you choke, you see fear in the eyes. You can see it in PM’s eyes.” “Two things. First is Epstein files,” Gandhi said. However, Jagdambika Pal, who was presiding over the Lok Sabha proceedings, intervened, saying that he won’t allow this. Gandhi agreed that he wouldn’t speak on the Epstein files.

The former Congress president said India’s greatest strength lies in its people and the data they generate, asserting that population should be seen not as a burden but as a national advantage in the 21st century.

“What we bring to the table is our people — their wisdom, what they do, their likes and dislikes, their imagination and their fear. In the 21st century, this has suddenly got value,” Gandhi said. “Population is not a weight. It is the biggest asset you can have. But it is only a strength if you recognise that data.”

Indian data would be a decisive factor

Gandhi said that in a contest between the United States and China, Indian data would be a decisive factor.

“If the INDIA alliance was negotiating with President Trump, the first thing we would say is that the most important thing in this equation is Indian data,” he said.

“If the Americans want to remain a superpower and protect their dollar, the key to that is Indian data.”

Gandhi also took issue with earlier remarks by the Prime Minister and National Security Adviser Ajit Doval that “the era of war is over”, arguing instead that the world is entering a period marked by open conflict and strategic confrontation.

“There is war in Ukraine, war in Gaza, tensions in the Middle East, the threat of war around Iran. We ourselves conducted Operation Sindoor. We are moving into a world of instability,” Gandhi said.