Did India remain empty handed in trade deals despite spending crores of rupees? Congress’s sharp attack:

News India Live, Digital Desk: In politics, the glamor of events often overshadows the actual agreements. Congress has now made a similar claim regarding the programs ‘Namaste Trump’ and ‘Howdy Modi’. Congress has targeted the Central Government and said that despite spending crores of rupees like water, the ‘trade deal’ with America has not been in India’s favor as was expected.

The grandeur of the event and the reality of the claims

You might remember, when Donald Trump and PM Modi shared the stage at Motera Stadium in Ahmedabad, it was described as the beginning of a new era in India-US relations. But Congress alleges that the economic figures behind this ‘photo-op’ are quite disappointing.

Main questions of opposition:

What happened to the trade deal? Did mega events alone reduce business losses?

Burden on general public: What was the actual return of the crores of rupees spent on these events?

Strategic Failure: Did America impose its own conditions instead of giving trade concessions to India?

Debate broke out on social media

Congress took a jibe from its official handle and said that the ‘Howdy Modi’ program which was being touted as a game changer, remained just an event. The party argues that the trade benefits that India should have received in terms of statistics were put on hold during the Trump administration.

What do experts say?

Political experts believe that grand events to welcome foreign leaders are good for increasing soft power, but when it comes to economic policy, America always remains firm on its ‘America First’ policy. In such a situation, expecting a big deal based only on events can be risky.