Congress trying to repackage failed ‘Chowkidar Chor Hai’ campaign as ‘PM is compromised’ drama: Read how Rahul Gandhi’s lies over US-India trade deal and others are being hyped

The power-hungry politics of the Indian National Congress blurred the lines between its animosity towards the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the nation itself. The desperation to regain New Delhi has continued to intensify as the party persistently drifted further away from it, resorting to absurd claims and falsehoods in an attempt to push the public into supporting the devious narrative, despite its legacy of repeatedly spectacular failures. Now, in a similar pursuit of achieving some degree of success in its agenda, the Congress has chosen to target Prime Minister Narendra Modi regarding the trade deal between India and the United States, following the Supreme Court’s judgement which pronounced President Donald Trump’s “liberation day” tariffs as illegal. Rahul Gandhi confronts PM Modi with outrageous lies, dares him to cancel non-existent India-US trade deal On 24th February (Tuesday), Rahul Gandhi referred to the trade pact between the two sides as an “arrow piercing the hearts of Indian farmers,” declaring PM Modi as a compromised leader who completely surrendered and insisting, “He was trapped and forced to sign it.” He even implicated Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri and industrialist Gautam Adani as two reasons for the approval of the agreement. “The US Supreme Court has annulled the tariffs that were imposed by Trump on various countries. Afterwards, these nations promptly terminated their trade agreements. Nevertheless, Narendra Modi has not uttered a single word. I extend an open challenge from this platform to him to revoke the India-US trade accord. If you have the courage, do it,” he dared in a “Kisan Mahachaupal” rally in Bhopal. He added, “I am telling BJP workers that he will not do anything due to the pressure exerted by America and Trump. He will not act because of the impending threat of the Epstein files and the serious allegations against Adani. India has been betrayed. This is the truth.” मोदी जी, खुली चुनौती है – India-US Trade deal रद्द कर के दिखाइए।अमेरिकी सुप्रीम कोर्ट ने ट्रम्प के टैरिफ़ रद्द कर दिए, दुनिया भर के देशों ने अपने समझौते renegotiate कर दिए – आप क्यों खामोश हैं?सारा देश जानता है आप ये नहीं कर सकते – क्योंकि आप अमेरिकी Grip में Choke कर पूरा… pic.twitter.com/DWODIeF9z7— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) February 24, 2026 The Rae Bareli MP stated that Trump even tweeted about how PM Modi talked to him and assured him that he would sign the pact which had been stalled for four months. He charged, “The prime minister fled from the lower house and the next day made a bogus excuse that Congresswomen were planning to attack him. The truth is that he could not stand in the Parliament and phoned Trump.” The leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha subsequently named Union Ministers Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Rajnath Singh and Nitin Gadkari to assert that the cabinet had not been consulted prior to his conversation with Trump. “Millions of Epstein files are held up in the US. There are at least 30 lakh documents with videos, emails and messages which have not been released. Hardeep Puri’s name was released to threaten the government to comply or more details are going to be unveiled,” he stressed, while announcing the alleged first motive behind the deal. चार महीने से अमेरिका के साथ ट्रेड डील रुकी हुई थी।लेकिन प्रधानमंत्री नरेंद्र मोदी ने सिर्फ दो कारणों की वजह से इसे साइन कर दिया। ⦿ पहला कारण-अमेरिका में लाखों Epstein फाइलें बंद पड़ी हैं। लाखों फाइलों के ईमेल, मैसेज, वीडियो अभी तक रिलीज नहीं किए गए हैं। अमेरिका ने मोदी… pic.twitter.com/8M42OXGSZ6— Congress (@INCIndia) February 24, 2026 Gandhi also referenced Anil Ambani, who appeared in the infamous files and demanded, “Anil Ambani is not my friend but PM Modi must clear his relationship with him. There are more such individuals who are yet to be disclosed.” He then shifted to Adani and labelled him as the second and more important factor. “Adani has taken over the country, from airports to cement. The name is everywhere. It is not a small company. It is the financial structure of Narendra Modi and the BJP. Adani faces criminal charges in the United States. He cannot go to America or Europe and is scared of being imprisoned. The target of the case is PM Modi, not Adani. These are the two reasons why Modi ran away from Parliament and told Trump of his willingness to accept all conditions and ink the deal,” he accused India-US agreement and the veracity of allegations levelled by Congress The truth predictably stands in stark contrast to the statements made by the Gandhi scion, as no such accord has been executed between the two trading partners. The Modi government has only given a nod to a framework arrangement, and extensive negotiations are currently underway, as is the case with free trade agreements (FTAs). These discussions can take several months and often extend over years before a conclusion is reached and mutually acceptable terms are established. In fact, a delegation from India was scheduled to travel to Washington for negotiations to finalise an interim trade settlement, but the trip was postponed in light of the decision delivered by the apex court of the United States. The centre’s strategic patience and methodical approach to bilateral trade negotiations have turned out to be smart and far from being caught off guard, unlike other nations that have formed deals with the United States. India presently has more room to reconsider and possibly negotiate better conditions. Likewise, it is clearly apparent how New Delhi has maintained its stance and practised an independent sovereign policy under the Modi government, which did not falter despite 50% tariffs imposed by the White House, relentless threats to halt imports of Russian oil and even refuted Trump’s boastings in relation to negotiations for a ceasefire between India and Pakistan. On the other hand, the opposition and its ecosystem have continually tried to incite farmers after every significant agreement to create unrest and cast PM Modi unfavourably. However, the government has regularly emphasised that these deals are designed with the interests of farmers at heart. Union Minister for Agriculture & Farmers Welfare and Rural Development, Shivraj Singh Chouhan, pointed out that the accord with the United States completely protects India’s agricultural interests, especially those of the farm and dairy industries. He mentioned that “no market segment has been opened in a manner that could harm Indian farmers.” “For us, the interest of farmers is the foremost priority. India will never compromise the interests of farmers, fishermen and dairy farmers. I believe, personally, I will have to pay the price, and I am ready for that,” PM Modi had vowed last August. Additionally, PM Modi did not escape from the Parliament because he was unable to face the opposition or was under any pressure, but he was instructed by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla not to attend to prevent an unwarranted situation there. “I received credible information that several members of the Congress party could have approached the prime minister’s seat and caused an unforeseen incident,” Birla voiced. “If such an incident had occurred, it would have severely damaged the dignity of the nation. To avoid this, I urged him not to come to Parliament,” he outlined. The repetitive Adani rhetoric The Congress has sought refuge in jibes directed at Adani and Ambani after realising its inability to defeat the saffron party in the electoral battlefield. Gandhi again borrowed from the old playbook and alleged that PM Modi is in cahoots with Adani and has hurt national interest to protect him in the United States. He earlier went so far as to invite Trump to leverage the mogul against India. The absurd claims of collusion have not only been denied by the tycoon but also lack any supporting evidence. However, the double standards and blatant hypocrisy of the party have been remarkably visible as its governments engage in business with him while frequently attacking him without any proof. “You can never get any personal help from PM Modi. You can speak to him about policies in the national interest but when a policy is framed, it is for all, not only for the Adani group,” he expressed during his interaction with Rajat Sharma on Aap ki Adalat in 2023. “We want to make maximum investments in every state. The Adani group is working in 22 states, and all these states are not BJP-ruled. We are working even in Left-ruled Kerala, in Mamata Banerjee’s West Bengal, in Naveen Patnaik’s Odisha, in Jaganmohan Reddy’s Andhra Pradesh, even K Chandrashekar Rao’s Telangana,” he added, exposing how different regions, regardless of ruling parties, are conducting business with him. The swift rise of Adani and Ambani occurred during the tenure of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA), despite assertions that the Modi government practised crony capitalism and aided their ascent. Interestingly, the head of the Adani Group doubled his wealth to Rs 33,211 crore in 2011, making him the nation’s top wealth generator. Moreover, neither the Adani Group nor the Reliance Group was on the list of those who acquired electoral bonds, which further discredited the contentions of ties between them and the BJP. However, the unyielding assaults have been sustained by Congress irrespective of the merits of the arguments and after being invalidated by the Supreme Court of the country. Hardeep Puri’s inclusion in the propaganda Hardeep Puri’s name was included in the Epstein files, and Congress intended to exploit it as a “gotcha” moment to trap the Modi government. Nonetheless, the truth is that the emails were professional and bore no connection to the sinister conduct associated with the late disgraced banker. The same was noted by BJP leader Amit Malviya while reacting to a post by a Congress spokesperson. Sit down.Read the entire email thread and you’ll see there is no reference whatsoever to anyone being supplied with girls — nothing in the conversation even points in that direction.Epstein is writing to Kathryn Ruemmler, then White House Counsel in the Obama Administration,… https://t.co/ZNZ8lI4SK9— Amit Malviya (@amitmalviya) November 13, 2025 “Just three-four references out of three million emails. I met Epstein on a few occasions as part of a delegation and exchanged just one email. Our interactions had nothing to do with his crimes. We talked about Make in India,” Puri stated in an interview with NDTV. “I had no interest in Epstein’s activities. For them, I was not the right person,” he highlighted. “By the way, I don’t want to be defensive on it. I meet a lot of people in my life. Many of the people I interact with at the political level have been convicted of something. Yesterday, somebody was talking to me about somebody who was convicted of organ trading,” he conveyed strenuously, suggesting the ridiculousness of holding him accountable for Epstein’s behaviour due to the brief professional relation. “After I resigned as India’s ambassador to the United Nations, I was invited to join the International Peace Institute (IPI) a few months later. I was not part of the IPI. I was secretary general of the Independent Commission (ICM) on Multilateralism, set up in the IPI as a project. My boss in the IPI, Terje Rod-Larsen, was the person who knew this Jeffrey Epstein and it was as part of a delegation of the IPI or the ICM that I met him on a few occasions, three or maximum four,” he reiterated in a press conference. “Chowkidar chor hai” to “PM is compromised”: Another Congress blunder in progress Congress and the entire opposition raised the issue of a purported scam involving Rafale jets in the lead-up to the 2019 Lok Sabha election. Gandhi even invokedthe Supreme Court to promote his fabrications of “Chowkidar chor hai (Watchman is a thief)” against PM Modi to thwart the BJP juggernaut. However, the latter seized the opportunity to mention how watchmen have been dubbed as robbers and insulted by the Congress. PM Modi launched a “Main bhi Chowkidar (I am also a watchman)” campaign, which struck its mark, rendering the daunting ecosystem incapacitated. The opposition, which wanted to thrash him, had to endure a profoundly humiliating loss. The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) secured a commanding majority of more than 353 seats, with the BJP exceeding 300 seats, whereas the grand old party was reduced to fewer than 55 seats. Gandhi himself was defeated in his family stronghold of Amethi and would have spent the next five years outside Parliament had he not opted to contest from Wayanad in Keralam. Furthermore, he was compelled to apologise in the Supreme Court for misusing its name to peddle his political discourse. A similar narrative has been unfolding with Gandhi’s “PM is compromised” remark. It was also echoed by shirtless officials of the Indian Youth Congress during a protest at the AI Impact Summit in Bharat Mandapam to damage India’s global image. The stunt was rightly described as “dirty and shameless politics” by PM Modi after which Gandhi released a video, threatening, “I and the lion-hearted warriors of the Congress will continue to defend the country, we won’t retreat even an inch.” The latter restated the egregious allegations that are currently being incessantly circulated, resembling the aforementioned 2019 phrase, as the strategy has been rehashed with outdated content and boring rhetoric, offering nothing fresh or inspiring to the voters. As a result, the negative tactics do not garner public support, which exacerbates the opposition’s resentment and bitterness. Besides, mockery or personal attacks on the prime minister have, in any case, not been beneficial for these parties as has been consistently illustrated. However, Congress does not learn from its mistakes and insists on sticking to its political game plan without any consideration of the harm it might inflict on its electoral prospects or the country at large.