Congress criticises govt over trade deal following SC ruling on Trump tariffs

The Congress on Friday welcomed the US Supreme Court’s decision striking down President Donald Trump’s sweeping global tariffs, and said India may have avoided being cornered into a “one-sided” trade deal had the government waited just 18 more days.

In a post on X, Congress general secretary (communications) Jairam Ramesh praised the ruling, saying, “Hats off to the US Supreme Court for striking down President Trump’s entire tariff strategy! Quite an amazing decision given its ideological composition. A 6-3 verdict is decisive. The American system of checks and balances still seems to be working.”

Senior Congress leader P. Chidambaram said the government must clarify the implications of the judgment for the “deal” announced between India and the US on 6 February. He noted that he had earlier argued that if the court struck down Trump’s tariff imposition, the two countries would revert to the status quo ante that existed before 2 April 2025.

Chidambaram alleged that in the interim, the US had extracted several concessions from India without offering reciprocal benefits. He cited commitments outlined in the joint statement, including zero tariffs on several American exports to India, India’s stated intent to import goods worth $500 billion from the US, a halt to purchases of Russian oil, and steps to address non-tariff barriers affecting US goods.

“What will happen to those promises?” he asked, adding that an Indian delegation currently in the US to finalise the text of the Framework Agreement must now reassess its position in light of the verdict.

Congress media and publicity department head Pawan Khera also criticised the government’s approach. “‘Haste is the work of the devil.’ The Supreme Court of the United States has struck down Donald Trump’s so-called global tariffs. Had India waited just 18 more days, we may not have found ourselves cornered into what is a one-sided, anti-India trade deal,” he said.

Khera questioned the timing of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s late-night call to Washington on 2 February and asked why India abandoned its initial strategy of waiting for the US Supreme Court’s ruling. He also raised questions about whether other factors — including disclosures by former Army chief Manoj Mukund Naravane, the shadow of the Jeffrey Epstein case, or a US criminal case involving industrialist Gautam Adani — influenced the government’s decisions.

“Today, the Congress has been redeemed: Narendra Modi is compromised,” Khera alleged.

The US Supreme Court, in a 6-3 ruling, struck down Trump’s far-reaching global tariffs imposed under an emergency powers law, dealing a major setback to an issue central to his economic agenda. The majority held that the US Constitution clearly vests the power to impose taxes — including tariffs — in Congress, not the President. The decision invalidated sweeping reciprocal tariffs that had been levied on nearly every other country under the emergency authority.

With PTI inputs