NEW DELHI: US President Donald Trump on Thursday suggested that the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) may have played a role in influencing India’s 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
During a joint press conference with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, The New Indian’s Editor-in-Chief Aarti Tikoo Singh questioned Trump about whether USAID had interfered in the 2020 US presidential election and India’s general elections in 2024.
“It (USAID) could have been involved in India’s elections. We saw troubling events in both 2020 and 2024. But the 2024 US election was too vast to manipulate—though I believe attempts were made. We are pushing for a system with single-day voting, voter ID, and paper ballots. Once that is in place, we’ll fix things thoroughly … bad things have happened,” Trump stated.
The US President also called the 2024 election “a great one” and expressed optimism about collaborating with PM Modi, emphasizing that the US-India relationship would strengthen under their leadership.
Meanwhile, the Trump administration has taken aggressive action against USAID, suspending its operations worldwide, except for critical emergency food relief programs. A majority of USAID employees were placed on leave last week, and personnel stationed overseas were recalled.
In India, the agency’s funding has sparked political controversy. BJP MP Nishikant Dubey recently urged the government to investigate organizations backed by USAID, alleging they were instrumental in fueling unrest and had ties to the opposition Congress party.
Speaking during Zero Hour in the Lok Sabha, Dubey accused USAID-funded groups of orchestrating protests against the Agniveer recruitment scheme, endorsing caste-based census efforts, and supporting left-wing extremism.
His remarks were met with strong objections from Congress lawmakers, who attempted to intervene but were overruled by presiding officer Sandhya Ray, citing procedural rules for Zero Hour debates.
Dubey also pointed out that President Trump had effectively dismantled USAID, claiming the agency had been used to destabilize governments worldwide.
