Trump vs. Deep State: Why Does This Battle Matter for India as Well?
Indian strategic and corporate circles see Biden's potential defeat as an opportunity to reduce US Deep State influence in India.
SputnikBig Tech platforms have been one of the biggest vectors for the Deep State to covertly wage "narrative warfare" in the country, Nupur J Sharma, the Editor-in-Chief of Indian website OpIndia, told Sputnik India.
Sharma has published a dossier titled Wikipedia's War on India, in which she highlights that Wikipedia's parent company, the Wikimedia Foundation, has been involved in wide-ranging "information warfare" operations against the Indian state, which she describes as a direct attack on the country's "sovereignty, independence, and integrity."
Sharma called out Wikipedia for maintaining strict editorial control over its content through a small group of editors. She also accused Wikipedia, in collusion with Google, of promoting anti-India narratives at the behest of the American Deep State and of flouting its "intermediary" status in the Indian law. Tides Foundation, one of Wikimedia Foundation's main donors, is funded by tech giants such as Amazon, Google, Meta, as well as George Soros and the Rothschild Foundation, according to the journalist. She stated that the foundation has financial links with anti-government groups in India.
"One of the main functions of the Deep State is to control information and Wikipedia fits perfectly into that agenda. The more I research, the more I am beginning to believe that Wikipedia is not only cultivated by the Deep State but is, in fact, one of its main players. It is no coincidence that the man [George Soros] who created a $1B fund to take down nationalists like Donald Trump and Narendra Modi, is one of the greatest benefactors of Wikipedia, – as the OpIndia dossier clearly proves," Sharma stressed.
Western media reports have indicated that Wikipedia was being edited from computers affiliated with the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Sharma noted.
In the case of Meta*, which owns Facebook* and Instagram*, she pointed to Mark Zuckerberg's recent confession that he was pressured by United States agencies to censor the Hunter Biden story.
"In India, Facebook has banned users for sharing stories of the post-poll violence against Hindus in West Bengal and there have been instances of accounts being banned specifically for sharing stories on atrocities against Hindus," Sharma underscored. "Instagram is promoting sexually explicit content to minors and recommending accounts of predators."
X (formerly Twitter) has been accused in India of promoting separatism and riotous information seen as causing harm to Indian sovereignty, particularly during the farmer protests, the editor added.
"I have no doubt in my mind that Western tech giants are controlled by the Deep State and are tools for their regime-change agendas across the world. It is, frankly, up to governments to be aware of this dangerous era of digital colonisation to safeguard their nation’s sovereignty and integrity," Sharma stated.
Following the release of Sharma's dossier, the Indian government wrote to Wikipedia,
questioning its "intermediary status" under the Information Technology (IT) Act. India has also complained to Wikipedia about reports of "bias" and "inaccuracies" in its content.
Indian industry sources highlighted that attacks on Indian financial institutions and entities by Deep State fronts have intensified under the Biden administration. They cited the Hindenburg Report as one example, noting how US Deep State fronts had attempted to exaggerate the issue in order to cause maximum damage, not only to corporations but also to retail investors and institutions.
"While Indian corporates view Trump as a maverick and there are apprehensions about him imposing baseline tariffs on foreign imports, we also expect that underhand attacks by the Deep State on Indian corporates will come under control," industry sources told Sputnik India.
Regarding potential tariffs, the Indian industry is prepared for such measures, the sources stated, expressing hope that the US-China trade tensions would create opportunities for Indian companies.
The US Deep State could be identified with western intelligence services, civil society groups as well as certain covert actors in media, politics, corporate and academics, Dr Abhinav Pandya, the Founder and CEO of Usanas Foundation, told Sputnik India.
"The Deep State is seen as deploying various narratives and strategies to disrupt peace and stability in target countries to achieve larger geopolitical goals, as seen in the cases of Maidan protests and Arab Spring. Further, the Deep State also has its influence in large conglomerates as well as the military-industrial complex, which would want war and unrest to sustain in various parts of the world. This helps in furthering the arms trade and other corporate interests," the expert explained.
Trump had promised to "demolish the Deep State" in his inaugural address in 2017 and he expected the second Trump presidency to be no different, as indicated in the election manifesto, Pandya said.
The Deep State's ideology, agenda, and roadmap are in complete contrast to what Trump represents, he stated. Trump advocates for conservative values and that his Make America Great Again (MAGA) philosophy carries a strong moral component, the pundit explained.
Trump "is seen as an opponent of undue American diplomatic and military interference in conflict theatres. He is seen as being firmly against the Deep State narratives projected in media and academia, which include glorification of the LGBTIQ+** movement and the dilution of gender identity," Pandya said.
The Democratic Party, on the other hand, has been extensively funded by Deep State 'assets' such as Soros, Pandya noted.
"India should stand to gain from Trump's projected crackdown on the Deep State influence. The Deep State has been viewed as being anti-India in its positions. In India, the Deep State is seen as shielding pro-Khalistani and other extremists or backing narratives seeking to divide the Indian society on caste and religious faultlines. The ouster of former Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina is also seen as a Deep State regime change plot. We hope and believe that Trump wont entertain these narratives," the Indian thinktank concluded.
* Meta and its products are banned in Russia
** Extremist organisation banned in Russia