Unfortunate, indeed!

Did you see how President Trump seemed to be treating a visiting Indian prime minister in the US on  Thursday?

By Nalini Ranjan Mohanty

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is shaming 140 crore Indians by genuflecting before an arrogant Donald Trump, and so transparently indeed!

Did you see how President Trump seemed to be treating a visiting Indian prime minister in the US yesterday, Thursday, February 13, 2025? 

Just hours before he met Modi, Trump issued his “reciprocal tariff” decree in which he specially deprecated India for high tariffs and threatened the largest democracy in the world with dire consequences, if it did not mend ways.

That was not all. Just look at the Press Conference of the two leaders: Modi went on and on, for almost 10 minutes, heaping encomiums on Trump’s spectacular victory and great policy initiatives in the last three weeks of coming to office; what was Trump’s response? 

He dismissed the Indian PM’s visit in less than 30 seconds by uttering just one sentence. 

As if that was not bad optics, the press statement issued by Trump’s office declared to the world that Modi’s India has agreed to buy oil and gas from America in ample measure; to rub insult to injury, we were told that India is obliged to accept US as the highest exporter of oil and gas to India. 

That is irrespective of the prevalent international price. 

We bought oil from Russia because that war-stricken country was ready to sell it to us at a discounted price; but, now the US, which has no indigenous oil or gas worth its name, is going to dictate the price and stipulate the quantum as well.

Trump did not just stop at forcing oil and gas down India’s throat. He made an open declaration that India would be forced to buy F-35 planes to bridge the trade deficit.

This is what is the obvious outcome of the Indian prime minister’s desperate visit to the USA — a meek surrender of India’s shorftt-term and long-term interests. It is unfortunate that the desperation of our leader, to be seen at the high table, has brought our country to such a sorry pass. 

When President-Elect Trump invited President Xi Jinping of China to his inaugural ceremony and PM Modi did not get a similar invite, our leader sent the Foreign Minister, S Jaishankar, to camp at Washington DC to lobby for a belated invitation. But Trump did not oblige. 

Look at Xi Jinping’s sense of self-dignity. Despite the invitation and a personal phone call from Trump, Xi skipped the ceremony and sent his vice president instead. That is how a confident leader projects himself and his country. 

But our apparently insecure leader, rebuffed at the inaugural invite, wanted to steal a march over leaders of other countries by being one of the first to call on Trump after his assuming the presidential office. Jaishankar lobbied in Washington again; this time Trump did not disappoint. He knew he could dictate a desperate Modi his terms and conditions, and the Indian PM would have no option but to sign on the dotted line.

That is what we were witness yesterday; a pathetic sight of the leader of 140 crore Indians virtually genuflecting before an arrogant Trump. 

Besides, not a word on the indignity and humiliation suffered by the shackled and chained 104 Indians, including women and children, deported so unceremoniously from America? With 18,000 more ‘illegal immigrants’ from India to be sent back, and a huge chunk from the home state of the prime minister, have the shackles and chains on Indians being deported become the latest ‘civilised’ protocol between two large democracies? For how long will our head of State choose to remain silent?

We, Indians, should hang our head in shame!

NR Mohanty was till recently Director, Jagran Institute of Management and Mass Communication, and former Resident Editor, The Times of India and Hindustan Times, Patna.