New Delhi: The Congress Tuesday brought forth BJP leader Smriti Irani’s connection with the USAID (US Agency for International Development) after the BJP raised questions over the agency allocating $21 million for “voter turnout” in India, wondering who the money was given to and calling for a probe into the matter.
Congress leader Priyank Kharge underlined in a post on X that Irani had earlier served as “USAID’s goodwill ambassador to India”.
“Interesting. According to the government’s official website, Ms Smriti Irani’s bio states that she has served as the USAID ‘Goodwill Ambassador’ to India. Does this imply that BJP politicians are the real agents of George Soros?” he asked. Billionaire Soros is alleged to have received USAID grants to destabilise governments across the world.
The BJP, in power at the Centre, and the opposition Congress have been trading charges over the $21 million funding ever since Elon Musk-headed US Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) cancelled the US taxpayer-funded grant given under the previous Biden administration.
DOGE has stated that USAID had allocated $21 million for “voter turnout in India” as part of a broader $486 million grant to the “Consortium for Elections and Political Process Strengthening”.
Apart from Irani, the Congress also slammed external affairs minister S. Jaishankar and Union minister Piyush Goel for endorsing the USAID during the Modi government’s tenure and asked how much funding the BJP-led NDA had got from USAID.
Piling on to Kharge’s charges, Congress leader Pawan Khera posted on X: “This is brilliant. We finally have the answer to BJP’s favourite question–Rasode Mein Kaun Tha? (who was in the kitchen?) The actual agent of George Soros turns out to be @smritiirani.”
BJP’s IT cell head Amit Malviya responded to the Congress’ allegations by bringing in the late Congress leader and former Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit.
The World Health Organization (WHO) appointed Smriti Irani as the Oral Rehydration Salts (ORS) Goodwill Brand Ambassador from 2002 to 2005. At the time, she was a household name due to the immense popularity of the television serial Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi.
The WHO… https://t.co/nlzSG7kzOz pic.twitter.com/AOwUKUydSk
— Amit Malviya (@amitmalviya) February 18, 2025
“The World Health Organization (WHO) appointed Smriti Irani as the Oral Rehydration Salts (ORS) Goodwill Brand Ambassador from 2002 to 2005. At the time, she was a household name due to the immense popularity of the television serial Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi,” he posted on X.
“The WHO campaign featuring Smriti Irani was endorsed by the Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC), among others, which permitted promotional material to be displayed on its buses. Sheila Dikshit was the Chief Minister of Delhi then, and Pawan Khera served as her personal assistant, handling trivial tasks like carrying her chappals and suitcase. Matters of actual significance, such as this campaign, were likely above his pay grade at the time,” he added.
Malviya further stated that a report by the Indian Institute of Management in Indore had documented the programme’s success. “Do I even need to mention that the Congress-led UPA was in power between 2004 and 2005?” he asked.
“Moreover, the Congress should stop obsessing over Smriti Irani. The fact that she defeated (senior party leader) Rahul Gandhi at the hustings will remain a permanent nightmare in their memory,” he stated.
In response to Malviya, Khera alleged on X that the BJP was demonising the USAID, Soros, global cooperation, and hiding behind so-called external interference to distract from its domestic failures.
Khera shared screenshots mentioning the 2023 collaboration between India and the USAID for supporting Indian Railways to achieve net zero carbon emission by 2030, and one of Jaishankar meeting the USAID administrator to discuss “global developments in the context of food, energy and debt challenges”.
“BJP IT cell coolies are invoking Ms Sheila Dikshit as the one who started the WHO ORS initiative, and thinking they will be able to embarrass us with that. It is something to be proud of… when you get caught with your pants down, you resort to foolish whataboutery,” he wrote, adding “we recognise the role of global cooperation in governance and geopolitics”.
BJP IT cell coolies are invoking Ms Sheila Dikshit as the one who started the WHO ORS initiative, and thinking they will be able to embarrass us with that. It is something to be proud of.
It is you who first demonise USAID, Soros, global cooperation, and then hide behind the so… pic.twitter.com/HJL03BHe9m
— Pawan Khera 🇮🇳 (@Pawankhera) February 18, 2025
Other Congress leaders also shared a video of Irani’s conversation with Jaishankar’s son in which she narrates her experience as USAID ambassador.
Also Read: Modi government’s U-turns expose a well-known secret—BJP is facing a crisis of conviction
BJP raises cry
After DOGE’s post mentioning the cancellation of USAID funding, Malviya to BJP MP Nishikant Dubey had questioned the intent behind the funding.
“$21M for voter turnout? This definitely is external interference in India’s electoral process. Who gains from this? Not the ruling party for sure!” posted Malviya Sunday.
He also alleged that “in 2012, under the leadership of S.Y. Quraishi, the Election Commission had signed an MoU with The International Foundation for Electoral Systems—an organisation linked to George Soros’s Open Society Foundation, which is primarily funded by USAID”. The Congress-led UPA was in power at the Centre that time.
BJP leader and former Union minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar spoke about “foreign funding” behind several protests in India.
“This shocking revelation that organisations like USAID were funnelling crores of rupees to organisations in India confirm that all of these protests that we were seeing over the last several years were foreign-funded. They were being instigated and puppet-mastered from across the border and that there are people in India, including political leaders, dynasts who have essentially become weapons in the hands of countries and people who don’t want to see India rise,” he said.
In Parliament, Dubey alleged that anti-India elements which were aligned with the Congress were being funded by the USAID. “Did USAID provide Rs 5,000 crore to Open Society Foundations run by George Soros to destabilise India? Did USAID and George Soros foundation give money to Rajiv Gandhi Foundation and Rajiv Gandhi Charitable Trust or not? I demand that the Congress should answer and a probe be conducted,” he said.
US President Donald Trump Tuesday defended DOGE’s cancellation of the grant. “Why are we giving $21 million to India? They got a lot more money. They are one of the highest taxing countries in the world, in terms of us; we can hardly get in there because their tariffs are so high. I have a lot of respect for India and their Prime Minister, but giving $21 million for voter turnout? In India? What about voter turnout here?” he asked.
(Edited by Nida Fatima Siddiqui)
Also Read: Two months into Modi 3.0, NDA’s ‘Fevicol bond’ shows signs of stress
