On Monday (24th February), Congress leader Jairam Ramesh falsely claimed that there is no evidence of USAID funding any project to ‘strengthen voter turnout’ in India.
He also alleged that all projects in India, sanctioned by USAID, are in partnership with the BJP-led Indian government. Earlier, The Indian Express also published a misleading ‘fact-check’ to negate any form of funding in India by the controversial US federal agency.
Jairam Ramesh shared a document by the Union Ministry of Finance and claimed, “None other than the Union Finance Ministry has thoroughly exposed the lies of the PM and his jhoot brigade, including his dapper External Affairs Minister.”
None other than the Union Finance Ministry has thoroughly exposed the lies of the PM and his jhoot brigade, including his dapper External Affairs Minister. As stated in the Finance Ministry's annual report for 2023-24, USAID is currently implementing seven projects in… pic.twitter.com/lS7BCJ0eXL
— Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) February 24, 2025
“As stated in the Finance Ministry’s annual report for 2023-24, USAID is currently implementing seven projects in collaboration with the Government of India, with a combined budget of approximately $750 million. Not a single of these projects has to do with voter turnout. ALL of them are with and through the Union Government,” he brazened out.
Jairam Ramesh attempted to suggest a ‘scandalous’ link between the Indian government and USAID, despite the fact that External Affairs Minister S Jaishanakar had himself conceded that the US federal agency was allowed to operate in India in good Faith.
The Modi government is not denying the fact that USAID operates in India. It had in fact ordered a probe into potential election interference by the US federal agency after the matter was highlighted by DOGE (Department of Government Efficiency).
The USAID funding for strengthening voter turnout in India is different from projects that it took up in partnership with the Indian government. This was highlighted by BJP spokesperson Amit Malviya.
The desperation of the Congress and its ecosystem of journalists and influencers 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… https://t.co/JnGrSfXsv6 pic.twitter.com/wHAl3ehqaw
— Amit Malviya (@amitmalviya) February 24, 2025
“Let us be clear—the USAID projects in question are official government-to-government partnerships, transparently executed as Externally Aided Projects (EAPs). The Centre simply channels these funds to states for development, which is well within the framework of cooperative federalism,” he pointed out.
“In fact, the very projects cited in the Finance Ministry’s 2023-24 report (uploaded in July 2024) trace their origins back to 2010-11. This isn’t new—even the 2014-15 report confirms the same,” Amit Malviya emphasised.
“The question is: why is the Congress defending covert interference by foreign donors and organizations linked to George Soros, which seek to destabilize our democracy under the guise of philanthropy? India’s sovereignty is not up for sale,” the BJP spokesperson pointed out.
Jairam Ramesh could not furnish any evidence which negates that USAID funded $21 million for strengthening voter turnout in India.
The Background of the Controversy
On 15th February, the Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) announced that it was saving US taxpayers money by cancelling projects abroad. One of them was about strengthening ‘voter turnout’ in India.
A sum of $21 million (~₹182 crore) was set aside by federal US agencies for the project. DOGE confirmed the matter in a tweet. It also cancelled another project, which aimed to splurge $29 million to ‘strengthening the political landscape in Bangladesh.’
On 21st February, incumbent US President Donald Trump further confirmed the figures during a speech in Miami. He had said, “And $21 million for voter turnout in India. Why are we caring about India turnout? We got enough problems. We want our own turnout, don’t we? Can you imagine all that money going to India?”
Donald Trump added, “I wonder what they think when they get it. Now, it’s a kickback scheme. You know, it’s not like they get it and they spend. They kick it back to the people that sent it. I would say in many cases, anytime you have no idea what we’re talking about, that means there’s a kickback because nobody has any idea what’s going on there.”
There was evidently public uproar over the revelation, given that the controversial USAID had been trying to carry out regime change operations both in India and Bangladesh.
