Former Maharashtra Chief Minister and Congress leader Prithviraj Chavan sparked a major controversy on Tuesday by hinting at a Venezuela-style operation in India and questioning whether the US could intervene in a similar manner.
“Will something like what happened in Venezuela happen in India? Will Mr Trump kidnap our Prime Minister?” Prithviraj Chavan said, IANS reported.
The controversial remarks made by the former Maharashtra Chief Minister are likely to trigger a political storm, drawing sharp backlash and fierce criticism from the BJP.
According to IANS, the Congress leader, who has earlier questioned the effectiveness of the Indian armed forces and Operation Sindoor, is once again under fire. His latest comments, apparently hinting at a Venezuela-like operation within India, have sparked widespread outrage, inviting angry rebuttals and mockery across social media platforms.
The stinging remarks come at a sensitive time, coinciding with reports of the US President allegedly threatening to impose higher tariffs on India if New Delhi fails to align with Washington’s demands.
“With 50 per cent tariff, trade is simply not possible. In effect, this amounts to blocking India–US trade, especially exports from India to the United States. Since a direct ban cannot be imposed, tariffs have been used as a tool to stop trade. India will have to bear this,” Chavan stated, IANS reported.
Speaking about the impact of the US’ unilateral 50 per cent tariffs on India, he said, “The profits that our people earlier earned from exports to the US will no longer be available. We will have to look for alternative markets, and efforts in that direction are already underway.”
“He (Trump) may impose more taxes, it hardly matters as the trade between the two nations has already come to a standstill,” he further said, speaking about Trump’s purported threat to India to escalate tariffs to ‘rein in’ India.
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