USAID's Sole Objective Was to Oust Modi: BJP Politician
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DOGE revelations show USAID attempted to influence Indian voters under the guise of boosting turnout, constituting political interference, BJP leader Savio Rodrigues told Sputnik India.
The now-defunded United States Agency for International Development (USAID) operated in India with a clear-cut agenda to topple Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government, said BJP leader Savio Rodrigues.
USAID tried to influence Indian voters under the guise of boosting turnout, the politician stated while commenting on recent revelations by Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) that US had earmarked around $21 million for "voter turnout" in India.
"The USAID definitely intensified its operations in India in order to paint the Modi government in a poor light. I believe that USAID has tried its best to ensure that PM Modi didn't come back to power in 2024," asserted Rodrigues.
Rodrigues explained that agencies like the USAID had always been driven by interests of leftist entities which in turn control the Deep State. He said that the Leftists view Prime Minister Modi as a global political adversary.
USAID-linked groups may have attempted to condition voters’ minds, amounting to blatant political interference, he added.
"The USAID sees India as being controlled by a party which is on the right of the political spectrum. Look at who all they have funded in India. There are several government critics as well as Islamist and leftist groups which have been beneficiaries of USAID funding. All these USAID beneficiaries have a common agenda, which is to throw PM Modi out of power," the BJP politician said.
DOGE has revealed that USAID funds into India were routed through organisations such as Consortium for Elections and Political Process Strengthening (CEPPS). A recent investigation by NDTV showed that CEPPS routed USAID funds through groupings such as International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES), National Democratic Institute (NDI), International Republican Institute (IRI) and Asian Network for Free Elections.
Significantly, India's Election Commission had signed an MoU with IFES on "election management" back in 2012, which has been protested by the BJP as it demanded an investigation into USAID funding in India. Last year, the BJP directly accused the State Department of trying to destabilise the Modi government through its funding of groups such as Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), which have levelled corruption allegations against billionaire Gautam Adani.
The disclosures by DOGE have sparked a political slugfest in India, with both the BJP and Congress accusing each other of being complicit in accepting American government funds.
For instance, as pointed out by PM Modi's Economic Advisor Sanjeev Sanyal, the USAID had been funding the Indian government's National Family Health Survey (NFHS) till as recently as 2021.
"Those concerned about USAID's interference in Indian elections should be equally concerned about USAID's tentacles in India's medical system and social policies," Sanyal commented on social media on Tuesday, going on to call USAID the "biggest scam".
Since 2014, USAID has also signed pacts with the Indian government on advancing "cashless payments" and supporting 'net zero emissions' in Indian Railways, according to official statements.
An archive of USAID-India relations shows that USAID began operations in India in the 1950, with food aid being its initial area of focus in the then newly-independent nation. India formally ended the USAID food aid programme in 2012. The archived website says that USAID worked in areas of agricultural research, alternative-energy technology development, biomedical research, water resources management and family planning among others.
According to a US government website tracking foreign aid, the USAID had an annual budget of $42.8 billion. In 2023, USAID reportedly disbursed around $175.71 million of funds to India in sectors such as health, economic development, education and social services among others. Around $7.43 million of USAID funds were allotted for "democracy, human rights and governance".
Commenting on USAID's continued involvement in India under successive governments, Rodrigues lamented the fact that both Congress and the BJP "failed to appreciate the hydra-nature of USAID".
"Just like that they haven't understood USAID, they haven't understood NED as well. The focus of successive Indian governments has been on the intelligence operations of the US Deep State, which is the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). But little attention has been paid to the CIA operations camouflaged in the garb of funding from USAID," the BJP politician stated.
He remarked that the problem of USAID's covert agenda in India has been ongoing for decades and that the Indian authorities have only woken up to the problem under Prime Minister Modi's government.
Further, Rodrigues explained that USAID and allied Deep State actors such as George Soros had a unique interest in investing in India's healthcare and agricultural sectors.
"The pattern is clear. The US Deep State has always wanted access to data of Indian citizens. They understand the value of data. When you have real-time data with you, you could manipulate the thought process by feeding information. That's the reason why USAID has been focussed on funding healthcare initiatives in India," the politician said.
He said that organisations like Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Open Society Foundation (OSF) and USAID viewed India as a "one giant laboratory" and Indians as "guinea pigs"
"The end goals are to manipulate the thought process through data and find a market for US corporations," Rodrigues suggested.
Giving an insider view into how USAID operates in low-income and developing countries, bestselling author John Perkins told Sputnik India that the "modus operandi" of Bretton Woods Institutions as well as USAID was more or less the same.
"My criticism of the IMF, World Bank and to a degree, USAID, has been directed at their policies to try and put low-income nations in a situation of debt," stated Perkins, the author of 'Confessions of an Economic Hitman'.
Perkins, a former US "economic hitman", said that foreign aid funds and loans earmarked for developing nations from US agencies are ultimately meant to benefit American corporations, as they are often the main beneficiaries of USAID grants.
Recounting his experience in Ecuador, he said that he was instructed by the US agencies to convince Ecuador to accept a World Bank loan: "At the same time, I was asked to find the best possible way to invest that money".
"I can't imagine economic hitmen like I used to be not operating in countries like India and Bangladesh," Perkins concluded.
