Date- 22 September 2019
Place- State of Texas, USA
PM Modi was addressing the 'Howdy Modi' event in Houston, Texas. Meanwhile, Modi said in the presence of Trump, Ab ki bar Trump Sarkar. Elections were held in America only a year later. In such a situation, this statement of Modi was seen in opposition to the Democratic Party and in support of Trump.
Date- 22 June 2023
Venue – Washington DC
PM Modi was addressing a joint session of the US Parliament. Meanwhile, he said, “There are millions of people in America who have roots in India. Many are sitting proudly in this House.” Saying this, Modi suddenly turned back and then smilingly looked at Kamala and said, there is one sitting behind me.
Hearing his speech, all the leaders present in the House stood up and started clapping. The whole house erupted in applause. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson also rose from his chair and began to applaud.
Kamala and Trump are facing each other in the US presidential election to be held two months later on November 5. Modi has reached America before this. He will address 25 thousand Indians in New York. About 50 lakh people of Indian origin live in America. Which can play a crucial role in the elections.
In such a situation, the question arises, who will benefit from Modi going to America before the election, what is Kamala and Trump's relationship with Modi, what is the stance of both the candidates on Indian issues?
Donald Trump considers PM Modi as his friend and calls him a 'fantastic man'.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi praising Kamala in the US Parliament.
PM Modi continuously praised Trump for 12 minutes… the longest partnership between the two leaders Trump and Modi have had a very strong relationship. Both call each other good friends and meet each other very warmly. When Modi visited America in September 2019, a “Howdy Modi” event was organized for him in Texas.
50 thousand Indians came to listen to PM Modi. Trump also participated in this event. Then PM Modi praised Trump for 12 minutes. Trump was laughing after listening to Modi's praise for so long.
PM Modi praised Trump and said-
Trump is popular worldwide. Everyone on earth knows them. The world knew Trump even before he became president. He has traveled from CEO to Commander in Chief. People of India feel attached to the slogan of 'Abki Bar, Trump Sarkar'.
There was a controversy in India on this statement made by Modi among Indians. Rahul Gandhi said Jaishankar should teach Prime Minister Modi some diplomacy. His statement may upset the Democratic Party. After the criticism, Jaishankar himself gave a clarification on Modi's speech.
After Howdy Modi in 2019, Trump visited India in February 2020. A program was organized to welcome him at the world's largest cricket stadium in Ahmedabad. It was named 'Namaste Trump'. More than 1 lakh people participated in it. PM Modi also visited the stadium holding his hand.
Trump recently said that he wants to meet Modi during his US visit.
Kamala's speeches mentioned India's heritage, but she did not come to India Modi met Kamala for the first time in 2021. Meanwhile he invited Kamala to come to India, but he did not come to India even once in the last 4 years. Last year in 2023, when Modi went to America again, Kamala hosted a lunch for him. During this he gave a speech of about 15 minutes.
However, the speech was more about his heritage related to India and less about PM Modi. Kamala praised PM Modi's fight against Corona and India's economic progress.
At the same time, PM Modi thanked Kamala Harris for her welcome. He said, “When Kamala Harris's mother came to America, she kept in touch with India through letters. The distance was thousands of miles, but the hearts were connected. Kamala took things to great heights.”
Earlier in June 2021, Modi called Kamala. He thanked Kamala for helping Indians living in America.
Kamala Harris told PM Modi during her visit to America in September 2021 that India needs to protect democracy and human rights.
Kamala VS Trump: Who is better for India?
As for issuing visas to Indians – Trump banned H-1B, expect something better from Kamala Kamala Harris' stance on visa policies is more flexible than Trump's. People moving from India to the US in search of work need an H-1B visa. Trump has always been against such visas. They say it's bad for the American people. Trump banned the H-1B during his presidency.
At the same time, Kamala Harris takes a soft stance on the visa issue. He wants America to give the country as many visas as it needs so that immigrants can stay in America. Kamala Harris is better for Indians on this account.
This is the reason why 55% of Indians in America are supporters of the Democratic Party. At the same time only 25% of Indians are considered supporters of the Republican Party.
In terms of trade, Trump removed India from the category of special business partner The Trump administration is more damaging to India on trade. Trump is in favor of making imports more expensive and promoting American exports. It may harm India. During Trump's tenure, there were several occasions of controversy between India and the US on trade issues.
Trump removed India from the Special Business Partner category during his first term. A country in this category can sell about 2 thousand products in America without any tax. But Trump said that India is benefiting from this system. India wants to pay less tax itself but collects more tax from American companies.
In July 2024, Trump said at an election rally that India had imposed a 200% tariff on Harley Davidson. Bikes have become expensive due to the imposition of tariffs. That is why the American company could not sell its bikes there. Trump said that India wants to bring foreign companies into its country but imposes high tariffs on their products. Democrats are more right about trade deficits and tariffs.
Internal Politics of India – The Biden government has often upset the Indian government by commenting on India's internal politics. Trump government's record in this matter has been good.
Human rights and the Kashmir issue
Kamala Harris' stand on Kashmir and human rights does not match India's. Kamala made a statement on the abrogation of Article 370 in Kashmir and subsequent human rights related issues. He also criticized the Modi government.
In October 2019, after the abrogation of Article 370, Harris said, “We have to remind Kashmiris that they are not alone in the world. We are monitoring the situation. If the situation changes, there will be a need to intervene.”
However, after becoming the Vice President, Kamala Harris's attitude has changed. He never made any statement that would make the Government of India uncomfortable.
The Democratic Party and Kamala Harris's Stand on Immigrants The Democratic Party is also known for its weak stance on illegal immigration. The party is being criticized for this. However, Kamala Harris advocates stricter immigration laws. Kamala alleges that the Republican government does not want any solution to this problem.
In fact thousands of people are entering the US illegally every day. They live by doing small jobs or labor in America. American industrialists needed cheap labor to run factories. If illegal immigration stops, they will not find cheap labor.
At the same time, if immigration is legalized, these workers will have to be paid according to government regulations. It will reduce the profit of business companies. This is the reason why most industrialists pressure the government not to change the current system. This is the reason why most of the industrialists are supporting the Democratic Party and giving more donations to them.
Immigration has become a major issue in the US presidential election.
Who is better at confronting China, Kamala or Trump? Priyanka Singh of the Institute for Defense Studies and Analysis says that America considers China to be the biggest threat. In such a scenario, whichever party is in power, will deal with China the same way it has been doing. If Trump becomes more vocal, he will continue to make more statements about China, but at the government level, both parties will maintain the same stance on China.
They often say they will impose heavy tariffs on goods from China. But the Biden government has also taken such steps. The Biden administration has imposed tariffs of up to 100% on Chinese EVs, semiconductors, batteries, solar cells, steel. This can benefit India. Prime Minister Narendra Modi wants to bring semiconductor industry to India.
Who's Better Expert Commentary- Priyanka Singh says whether Kamala Harris or Trump wins, nothing much will change in Indo-US relations. Both are good for India. Economic, military or diplomatic relations between India and the US have advanced significantly in the last few years.
Whichever party the next president belongs to will carry it forward. There will be no break in it now. There will be issues on some issues but it will not affect the relationship between the two countries. However, there are some points where differences can be seen between the two administrations. India is very unlikely to support either candidate.
Image Credit: (Divya-Bhaskar): Images/graphics belong to (Divya-Bhaskar).
