Congress calls deal a capitulation, says there is hidden agenda India News

NEW DELHI: Terming the interim framework for the India-US trade deal a “surrender”, Congress on Saturday said Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal’s statement on agricultural imports was “too smart” as the joint statement mentioned the list of products on which India would remove or reduce tariffs, including “other products”.Congressman Jairam Ramesh noted that without specifying “other products,” the category was “too open and suggests something is being hidden.” He said people will be concerned as more details come to light.Former Finance Minister Chidambaram said that India and the United States have not reached any trade agreement and this is not even an interim agreement but a “framework for an interim agreement”.Chidambaram said: “One thing is clear: the framework agreement is heavily tilted towards the United States, and the asymmetry is obvious.”Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera claimed that the agreement would overwhelm farmers in the future.