Rahul Gandhi and Piyush Goyal (right)
New Delhi: Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal Fierce attacks on opposition leader in Lok Sabha continued on Saturday Rahul Gandhi “He is showing his stupidity,” he said over concerns about the India-US trade deal. He once again offered the Center’s clarification on the trade deal after nearly a year of negotiations amid an ongoing war of words over the issue.He also claimed that the Lok Sabha was “trying to destroy India’s growth story with his negative politics”.
Targeting Rahul Gandhi, Goyal claimed that he had countered Rahul’s “scaremongering” by presenting “ironclad evidence” about the India-US trade deal, which he said had misled farmers and exporters.He posted on X and wrote three points:
- “Our nine free trade agreements covering 38 developed countries have opened up a potential textile market worth Rs 450 crore. India today exports textiles worth Rs 400 crore. Imagine the growth potential, creating lakhs of employment opportunities for young men and women!”
- “Rahul is attacking
textile exporters And trying to scare our Indian farmers that their demand for cotton will go down. He did not know that U.S. cotton production is very small. After deducting domestic consumption, U.S. cotton and yarn exports are only 6 billion US dollars. He also did not know that Bangladesh imports $2.7 billion worth of cotton from India and they will have to continue doing so because the US does not have any cotton left. Therefore, due to the huge growth potential of our textile industry, the demand for Indian cotton will continue to grow and increase the income of farmers. “
- “By the way, even if your family is running the Congress government,
foreign trade policy and Special Economic Zone Law [rule 27(1)] Duty-free import of raw materials, including cotton, for the production of export goods has always been allowed. So when Rahul Gandhi attacks “zero duty on exports”, he is attacking a policy initiated by his own party! What an ignorant leader of the opposition. No wonder he lost election after election. “
Further clarifying the agreement, Goyal added, “Rahul Ji, Indian farmers and textile workers will gain hugely from the US trade deal and other free trade agreements struck by the NDA government…The people of India trust Prime Minister Modi. Your lies will fail.”Earlier in the day, Rahul Gandhi also stepped up his attack on the recently finalized trade deal with Washington, claiming it would hurt Indian cotton farmers and textile exporters. In a post on X, he claimed the government had walked into a “trap” that had plunged millions of families into the “abyss of unemployment.”“18% tariffs vs. 0% tariffs – let me explain how this liar prime minister and his cabinet are sowing confusion in this regard. And how they are deceiving the country’s cotton farmers and textile exporters with the Indo-US trade deal.”Rahul said he raised the issue of special concessions to Bangladesh in Parliament after Indian garments were levied 18% tariff in the US market. According to him, one minister replied: “If we want the same benefits, we have to import cotton from the United States.”
