NEW DELHI: BJP on Monday accused Congress of defending “covert interference” by foreign donors seeking to destabilise India’s democracy, after the opposition party cited a finance ministry report on USAID-funded projects in India to claim that it has thoroughly exposed govt’s “lies”.
BJP IT department head Amit Malviya claimed the desperation of Congress and its ecosystem to deflect from the controversial USAID funding routed through various “George Soros-linked fronts and a labyrinth of NGO structures to meddle with India’s electoral process is a dead giveaway”. “It is now obvious who the beneficiaries are,” he said on X.
He said USAID projects are official govt-to-govt partnerships, transparently executed as externally aided projects. Centre simply channels these funds to states for development, which is well within the framework of cooperative federalism, Malviya added.
The projects cited in the finance ministry’s 2023-24 report trace their origins back to 2010-11, Malviya said, adding that this is not new as even the 2014-15 report confirms the same.
He said the question is why Congress is defending “covert interference” by foreign donors and organisations linked to Soros and which seek to destabilise Indian democracy under the guise of philanthropy.
“India’s sovereignty is not up for sale. Let us drop the selective amnesia and political theatrics. Facts matter. India’s governance will not be dictated by foreign agents masquerading as benefactors,” Malviya said.
For financial year 2023-24, an obligation of $97 million was made by USAID under the seven projects, the finance ministry report said. During the year, no funding was made for enhancing voter turnout but to projects related to agriculture and food security programme; water, sanitation & hygiene (WASH); renewable energy; disaster management and health.
