Amidst the USAID showdown, the finance ministry said no US funds were given for voter turnout last year.
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00:00Good evening, hello and welcome, you're with the news today, your prime time destination,
00:10news, news makers, talking points, a big talking point tonight. Donald Trump's verbal googly's
00:16are stumping India day after day. His remark on election funding being given to India is
00:23now being tangled. Many believe in needless politics. That's going to be the big question.
00:29We'll tell you really where has the money of USAID's gone. Also, we'll have the latest on
00:35the tragic Telangana tunnel collapse. Eight people are still trapped. And a day after Pakistan's
00:42Champions Trophy debacle to India, we'll tell you just what's gone wrong with our neighbours
00:49across the border when it comes to cricket. But as always, first, it's time for the nine
00:54headlines at nine. Amidst the US aid showdown, finance ministry says no US funds were given for
01:02voter turnout in the last year. Revealed $750 million funds from the US are being used in
01:09various welfare projects. Aid workers remain trapped after the Telangana tunnel collapse on
01:18Sunday. 300 trained personnel including 128 from the NDRF have been deployed for the rescue operations.
01:29Stormy day one of the Delhi Assembly. BJP versus AAP over an alleged Ambedkar photo swap.
01:36Chief Minister says portraits only rearranged. Delhi government to table CAG reports against AAP tomorrow.
01:43Prime Minister hits out at Lalu Prasad over Khum remark, says Jungle Raj people troubled by large
01:51congregation. Yogi slams opposition, says pigs saw dirt and vultures only saw dead bodies at the Khum.
02:01Lokayugta ignores an EV probe, asks Siddharam Iyer 30 questions in Mudak case.
02:06Chief Minister says no role in wife's land deal.
02:09India's most famous influencers in trouble after latent drought. Ranbir
02:17Allahbadia, Ashish Chachlani appear before Maharashtra's cyber cell to record their statements.
02:24After the Indian Air Force chief raised concerns over the HAL delay, government to speed up HAL
02:29Tejas production forms a five-member panel to conduct a probe into the delays.
02:35Defence Secretary to submit a report in a month.
02:42India today's Operation Ganki impact licenses of 40 Amritsar travel agents revoked
02:47for facilitating illegal travel to US. Notice issued to 270 others by Punjab police.
02:56Pakistan's Intel warns of an Islamic State plot to kidnap foreigners at the Champions Trophy.
03:01Group reportedly conducting a survey and said key location.
03:14But let's turn to the story that's breaking at this moment. Eight people are still trapped
03:20inside the Srinasailam left bank canal tunnel in Telangana. Inflow of water and mud has
03:27obstructed the rescue work. Sadly, Uttarakhand's rat hole miners who helped when there was a
03:35tunnel collapse in Uttarakhand two years ago have now been roped in. The six rat hole miners are at
03:41the site. Six more are expected to reach tomorrow. But the story that's breaking at the moment is
03:48coming from Telangana where the NDRF and now the rat miners are still engaged in a rescue operation
03:56trying to find the trapped eight miners. Okay, let's go straight across first to the NDRF. DG
04:05is joining me at the moment. Piyush Anand is the DG NDRF whose team is there right on the spot.
04:12Appreciate your joining us, Mr. Anand. What is the biggest challenge you're facing at the moment
04:17to rescue the trapped miners?
04:23My friend, you will be aware that this is a very complicated situation
04:27because the incident has taken place almost like 14 kilometers deep inside the tunnel.
04:34So, I mean, the complications arise because already it is 14 kilometers deep, number one.
04:40There is a lot of water which is still seeping in. There is a lot of slush, a lot of silt is there.
04:48So, that has really added to the complications.
04:52How many of your team members are involved actually in the ground operations?
05:02So, we were the first ones to react as soon as we got the information. So, we rushed our teams
05:08from Hyderabad and from our battalion headquarter in Vijayawada. So, finally, we were able to reach
05:13there the same day and we have four teams in place. And our commandant who is there based in
05:20Vijayawada, we also rushed him there. And apart from that, we knew that something similar had
05:26happened in Silkiara. So, the unit, the commandant who had operated there in Silkiara, so we rushed
05:32in from their battalion headquarter which is in Haldwani, Rudrapur. And we, I mean, rushed him
05:37from Rudrapur to along with his team members to this scene of incident. So, as of now, we have
05:45four teams and two commandants who are there at the scene of incident. You mentioned just now,
05:52Mr. Anand, that you were successful in Silkiara and Uttarakhand, though it took more than two
05:57weeks for the operation to conclude successfully and rescue the miners there who were trapped there.
06:03Is this rescue operation way more difficult because of the slush and the mud on the site?
06:13For us, every operation is tough and I'll not be doing my job properly if I compare two operations.
06:23But as I mentioned previously, this has got many challenges. So, this is equally challenging,
06:30if not more. But people on the ground, Mr. Anand, are fearing that hope is dimming
06:37for the trapped workers. Do you remain hopeful that you can still rescue the workers, that they
06:41are still alive? Look, we also, we always believe that there is hope and we will try to the last
06:52possible extent to try to save these people. So, we never give up hope and that is not in our motto.
06:59We always try to the last point. We are told though that the rat miners team arrived this
07:06evening. They were the ones who were the heroes in many ways in Uttarakhand.
07:10At what stage will you involve them fully in the rescue efforts?
07:17You may already be aware that MHA, that's the Home Ministry, is actually coordinating this
07:24whole operation very closely. So, apart from NDRF, Air Force, Army, Navy, they are all involved.
07:33I mean, Air Force has been regularly running helicopter sorties to transport different teams
07:39from Hyderabad to the scene of incident. NDMA is coordinating the whole operation
07:45and they have also sent experts who were there, who were operating there in Silkihara.
07:51And as a part of that team, they have also sent the rat hole miners who were involved in those
07:56operations. As and when they will be involved, I think it's an operational decision, which is based
08:02on the situation on the ground. So, as of now, it's very difficult to say when they will be used,
08:08how they will be used, because we have to be prepared to handle all sort of
08:13situations which can arise in this disaster. Right. Mr. Anand, for joining me right here at
08:19the top of the news, I appreciate you joining us, for giving us all the updates. We hope and pray
08:24for your success and your team is able to save all the trapped workers. Now, our correspondent Abdul
08:29Bashir has been on the ground. In fact, right where that tunnel collapse took place, he sent us
08:35this report a short while ago. It has been more than 60 hours and rescue operations are still
08:41ongoing at this Srisailam left bank canal tunnel project where the accident of collapse of ceiling
08:47had taken place and eight workers including one site engineer, a project manager and six
08:54workers are still stranded. Now, here the NDRF team, Indian Army, Indian Navy, every department
09:01had made their attempt to assess the whole situation and they were able to understand
09:06the situation is that the tunnel boring machine, a 200 meter long machine, had been struck inside
09:13due to continuous inflow or seepage of water and mud. A 160 meter of this machine had been
09:18crossed but the last 40 meters is where the all the teams are finding difficulty. Now,
09:23considering this particular situation, the Telangana government has roped in the teams
09:28that have worked for the Uttarakhand Silkyara tunnel accident site. Now, team of rat miners
09:36have been called in. Six members of rat miners have gone inside the tunnel where the accident
09:43had taken place and are trying to assess the situation to make a plan which will be executed
09:48to rescue these eight members. Abdul Basheer, they're reporting. Remember, it's the rat miners
09:55who the government in a way, both in Telangana, the center, is now turning to hoping that they
10:01can perform another rescue act. Let's turn to our top focus from there tonight because this is a
10:07controversy that is snowballing on a daily basis. It started with US President Donald Trump claiming
10:14as he often does off the cuff that 21 million dollars were used to improve voter turnout in
10:22India. Trump questioned why was the money going to India. That sparked off a slugfest between the BJP
10:29and the Congress. Today, the Congress cited a finance ministry report which said that all the
10:35funds given by US aid had been given for specific projects that had nothing to do with election
10:42funding. So, there you have the Ministry of External Affairs saying the charges are serious
10:48and the finance ministry virtually downplaying the charges. Narendra Modi government is claiming it
10:53will look into the claims made by the Trump administration. The problem is Donald Trump
10:59keeps changing his mind on a daily basis. First, he said it was 21 millions, then he said 18 million,
11:07then he said it was given to his friend, Mr. Modi, and he said it was given to India. Even so,
11:14some reports say the money actually went to Bangladesh and not India. So, has India
11:22jumped the gun? Do we have a little bit of egg on our face? Here's a report.
11:30Four statements in one week made by US President Donald Trump send Indian politics into a frenzy.
11:38Trump quoted a social media post by the Department of Government Efficiency or DOGE
11:43to claim allocation of 21 million dollars by US aid to increase voter turnout in India.
11:5221 million dollars for voter turnout in India. What do we need to spend 21 million for voter
11:58turnout in India? Well, 21 million dollars, I guess they were trying to get somebody else
12:04elected. Well, we ought to tell the Indian government. Even as Indian and American media
12:11fact-checked this claim to point out that the 21 million dollar aid was to Bangladesh and not
12:17India, gave more statements from Trump, each one different from the other.
12:24And 21 million dollars for voter turnout in India. Why are we caring about India turnout?
12:30We got enough problems. We want our own turnout, don't we? Can you imagine all that money going
12:35to India? I wonder what they think when they get it. Now, it's a kickback scheme.
12:4121 million dollars going to my friend, Prime Minister Modi in India for voter turnout.
12:49We're giving 21 million for voter turnout in India. What about us? I want voter turnout too,
12:54Governor. 29 million dollars to strengthen the political landscape in Bangladesh.
13:00Went to a firm that nobody ever heard of. 18 million dollars for helping India
13:09with its elections. Why the hell? Why don't we just go to all paper ballots? Let them help us
13:13with their elections, right? The BGP started by attacking the Congress right after Trump's first
13:21statement claiming a bid to influence Indian elections. Soon, the Narendra Modi government
13:27stepped in, assuring a probe. USAID was allowed here in good faith to do good faith activities.
13:36Now, suggestions are being made out of America that there are activities which are in bad faith.
13:42So, it surely warrants a look. And if there is something to it,
13:46I think the country should know who are the people involved in the bad faith act.
13:52The Congress demanded a white paper on all payments through USAID. Party leader Jairam
13:57Ramesh on Monday cited an annual report by the finance ministry for 2023-24.
14:04It said USAID is currently implementing seven projects in collaboration with the
14:08government of India with a total budget of roughly 750 million dollars.
14:13In the current year, USAID has committed 97 million dollars. The Congress pointed out
14:19none of these projects funded by USAID involved voter turnout.
14:54It said the projects mentioned in the finance ministry report are government-to-government
14:59partnerships. The ones under the scanner are USAID funding allegedly routed through George Soros
15:05linked fronts and NGOs. The question is how true are Trump's statements given the contradictions
15:12in his claims? The American president is known for firing salvos at his political rivals in the
15:19United States. This one seems to have had some serious fallout thousands of miles away from home.
15:26Bureau report India Today.
15:32What impact then is all of this having on Indian domestic politics? But more importantly,
15:38how is it playing out in the Ministry of External Affairs that has to handle
15:42the delicate task of managing Indo-US relations in the age of Trump? Who better to answer that
15:49than my colleague and Diplomatic Affairs Editor, Geeta Mohan. She has a new show,
15:53World Today, up at 10.30 every night. You've got to watch that. But Geeta, this is now getting to
15:59be a bit strange, if I may use the word, and that's a word I'm using politely, because every
16:05day a statement comes out of Washington and it sets off a firestorm in India with no evidence
16:11on the table yet of 21 million dollars being given for election funding. So we're actually
16:17debating an issue without even the money trail known to anyone else. MEA ministries after
16:24ministries are getting tangled in it. What is the MEA have to say? Well, absolutely, Rajiv. The fact
16:30that there is no fixed money trail that we can really look at to assess where did that money
16:37come from? And did that money come to India at all? This is domestic politics of the United States
16:43of America. Donald Trump playing to his constituency. US aid and the entire controversy revolving US aid
16:49had nothing to do with Bangladesh or India per se. It had to do with the fact that there was
16:53money being used, disbursed to various countries, projects that were of no use to America. And that's
16:59where it started from. After which there were statements that were made. If you ask me, Ministry
17:05of External Affairs did make a statement because there was an official statement made by none other
17:09than President of the United States of America. Should they have reacted so early on without
17:15having looked into the details? Hold on. Where was the official statement? Donald Trump has made remarks,
17:21right? But those remarks as of now are not backed by any hard evidence. But it's a statement by the
17:26President. So does it mean? If, Rajdeep, if it was a statement in media, media reports, then MEA says
17:33these are media reports, speculative. We shall not respond. But when the head of state or a
17:40minister says something, then that's official statement. They reacted. But should they have
17:45waited to see the documents? I think they should have waited. You know, just to ask you that the
17:49documents are there in the public domain. It's not as if US aid is some, you know, slush fund
17:57that's operating because you know, the way it's being portrayed can damage Indo-US relations.
18:03If today we start suggesting, as you know, even the external affairs minister, Dr. Jai Shankar
18:09seemed to suggest that these are somewhere, you know, serious enough charges that US aid acts,
18:15we expect them to act in good faith. Are we questioning the funding that's coming in through
18:21US aid, which is used by various projects in this country? No, but a lot of it was not in public
18:27domain and a lot of it has been archived, but quite a bit of it we've not been able to really
18:32see. But it is documented, right? It is documented. It is for sure documented. Government to government.
18:37It is government to NGOs too. But the government has to know where the money is
18:45going, surely. I mean, it will come through the Reserve Bank. Because there's accountability. They have to know
18:49where the money is going, how it is going, and the reason why Indian
18:54government has said, according to them, these are the projects, which is agriculture, welfare,
19:00and health, but nothing to do with elections. So what do you expect, therefore, the MEA to do now?
19:05Will they ask for a response from Washington or will they go through the documents? What are
19:11MEA's options? I think Dr. Jai Shankar has already made it clear that they are going to look at
19:16the fact that this is what has been accounted for by the Indian administration. And if there
19:21are details and the President is saying things like money was sent for elections, then they
19:27would seek more details. Okay, we'll wait and see what those details are. Geeta Mohan for telling us
19:31why the MEA finds itself in a bit of a bind on this. Thank you very much for joining me. Okay,
19:37let's just then look at where the numbers are coming from. Now, India today has a data
19:41intelligence unit. And the good thing is that the data intelligence unit seems to be moving faster
19:47than certain government agencies in this country. We actually have tried to find out where the funds
19:54of USAID go. And here's the news. There are no records, repeat no records of US fund allocations
20:03for voter turnout in the last decade. Records do show that over $14 million were given under the
20:11head, democratic participation and civil society between 2013 and 2024. Take a look at this
20:20explainer by our data intelligence unit reporter, Piyush Agarwal. Take a look.
20:27USAID gives funding under various categories, like healthcare, education, governance. The
20:34elections purpose, which comes under the governance category has received 121 million between 2001
20:42and 2024. Now, out of 121 million, only $14.6 million were earmarked for the purpose elections
20:51and democratic participation and civil society. Now, if we divide this amount into two categories,
20:58less than half a million dollars were given for elections category. This amount was disbursed
21:04between 2013 and 2018. And this amount was given to SIPS, a non-profit called Consortium for
21:12Elections and Political Process Strengthening as an implementing partner. The remaining 14.1 million
21:20were distributed among eight implementing partners, including National Democratic Institute,
21:26which received highest 7.6 million, RTI International and other enterprises.
21:35Interesting. Given those numbers that we've seen, none of them seem to suggest some major
21:41funding given to destabilize India. Let me raise the big questions. Have Donald Trump's verbal
21:47googly's, and I'm calling them verbal googly's intentionally, stumped India? Are Trump remarks
21:53getting needlessly tangled once again in politics here? Is there any proof on US bid to influence
22:00Indian polls? These are some of the questions that I want to raise. I'm joined by T.P. Srinivasan.
22:06He's former representative, United Nations, Washington, D.C. by K.C. Singh, former secretary
22:11of the Ministry of External Affairs. And Irfan Nooruddin is professor, Georgetown University
22:15School of Foreign Service, tracks South Asia very closely. I appreciate all of you joining us. K.C.
22:20Singh, to you first. What's your sense? Is this a storm in a teacup? Have we got egg on our face
22:27by immediately reacting to what Donald Trump said and now finding there may be no evidence, at least
22:32hard documented evidence, to back the claim that United States was funding Indian elections on
22:39voter turnout? We've dealt with Trump for four years, the last time he was president. And we
22:46know that he indulges in fact-free politics. He splashes facts around. And the Indian thing is
22:51only one part of it. Look at his exchanges with Ukraine. He says he's given $500 billion and I
22:58want that many minerals back from Ukraine. The facts are that he's given only about $120 billion
23:04and the EU have given more than that. So, you know, he just distorts figures. Therefore,
23:10it's always dangerous to immediately react when you hear something coming from him,
23:15either like Brzezinski, you contend it. There is a reluctance in New Delhi not to do that
23:21because then he gets very upset and you get into an altercation with him. Or you just put up,
23:27now you take the so many million dollars for condoms in Gaza, because Gaza, it was going
23:34into Israel, it was going to West Asia. The confusion is that the Gaza which is mentioned
23:39there is Gaza and Mozambique. And the condoms were going to fight HIV AIDS. It had nothing to
23:45do with Gaza and West Asia. So what Elon Musk has done, he's unleashed hundreds of these technocratic
23:52kids who are working for him. And they're going and pulling figures out, not knowing the context,
23:58not knowing the larger reality. But this is a program started by JFK in 1961. And JFK called
24:06it the developmental decade. Every country has it, we have a foreign assistance program. And in
24:12that democracy was always a part of it, because us wanted to spread the message about free markets
24:18and about democracy. It's not a secret. But is it possible? Is it possible that as a result,
24:23some of the money that was supposedly meant to promote democratic values could have gone to NGOs,
24:29which is then used by, in this instance, the BJP to suggest this was being done to
24:36benefit the opposition destabilize them? Or is that simply a barking up the wrong tree?
24:41The right MHA monitors it, you would have seen over the last two, three years,
24:46they've taken away the permission of a number of NGOs to receive foreign funding. They're very
24:51closely monitoring. It's not external affairs ministry, MHA is closely monitoring all flow of
24:56funds. So if there was any nothing on their radar, then certainly I don't see what is the
25:02Rooha at the moment, because it should have come up at that stage. They had like a tooth comb,
25:08you know, CPR, this and that they've stopped the funding of anyone, even seen as marginally
25:13critical of the government. But something that I've seen as affecting democracy.
25:19You know, that Mr. Srinivasan, what's your view? Has the government of India
25:24ended up overreacting? And without documented evidence to back these claims that actual money
25:31was sent $21 billion was sent to India, which in any case is not a very big amount to influence
25:36an Indian election for God's sake. Do you believe the government of India could have handled this
25:40better? Or do you believe that could be something more that could come out in the weeks and months
25:45ahead? I agree with KC, what may have happened. But one thing I can say is that this is against
25:55the USAID, not against India. President Trump is wanting to close it down. And he wanted to
26:01enumerate lots of faults made by USAID. And in the process, he found this figure somewhere
26:08and pushed it out. So we are getting tangled in his domestic politics. That's exactly it. He wants
26:13to cut back on USAID and we are getting the blow back. Let me also tell you one thing. India is not
26:20one of the major aid receivers from the US. I remember when I was there, there was a Burton
26:25amendment which used to come to the Congress every year. And we used to fight it tooth and nail.
26:30The resolution would say, cut down 10% of assistance to India for human rights violations
26:37in India. And then we found out there was no USAID at all activity in India. We are not an aid
26:43receiver at all. But still, we were fighting a shadow, thinking that we are getting it without
26:49finding out whether we are actually getting it or not. So finally, we decided not to fight it
26:53because we are not receiving any USAID at that time. And there was no point in fighting a huge
26:58battle in the Congress. So such things happen. But I think Mr. Jayashankar's point is valid. We
27:05have to look at it. And this is deserving a consideration that he has to say for the sake
27:10of the president. I don't think there will be any more skeletons in the coffin.
27:12But he's saying, I just want to understand, surely this documented evidence of money coming
27:17from USAID, which is an official government body of the United States, would be available to our
27:22ministries? The Home Ministry would monitor it. The Ministry of Finance would monitor it. They've
27:27come out with a report. You know, this suggestion that America was in some cloak and dagger manner
27:34operating seems a bit strange, doesn't it to you? This foreign hand bringing in George Soros now.
27:41Yes. No, that's all create headlines in India. That is why it happens. But as I said,
27:48the Burton Amendment where we are fighting without even knowing whether we are getting any USAID.
27:52So similar thing will appear. This money may have gone to Bangladesh or it may not have gone to
27:57anybody else. But this will come out. I don't think we need to worry too much about this
28:01allegation. Is this though Irfan Nooruddin, Elon Musk and Donald Trump at play using the
28:11Department of Government expenses because they want to cut down on government expenses. We are
28:15told today 1500 people are being have been served termination notice in USAID in Washington. And
28:22India is getting tangled in the domestic politics unleashed by the Trump-Musk duo. Is that the
28:28sense you get in Washington? 100% Rajdeep, as your esteemed co-panelists said. I mean,
28:34this is American domestic politics. It is attack on USAID and more generally,
28:39it is an attack on America's role in the world. I mean, at the end of the day,
28:43the idea that this money spent as your colleague Geeta Mohan said, was characterized as not being
28:48helpful to America is false, right? What Kennedy and every president after that understood is that
28:53America's power in the world was because of soft power. This is money that goes to help poor
28:58people around the world fight malaria, to fight hunger, starvation, and increasingly in recent
29:03years, to build market linkages, build entrepreneurship, etc. So what Trump and
29:09Musk are against is all of that. But look, what happened over here is you had Trump
29:14essentially talking as Ambassador Singh said, factory politics, he's shooting from the hip.
29:19And what is the real claim over here? There are two claims. One is that money went for voter turnout.
29:24That in and of itself, even if it was true, and it's not true, even if it was true,
29:28is not inherently controversial. Having more people participate in elections is a good thing.
29:33But the second thing he said was, first he said, this is for going to my friend, Mr. Modi. The
29:39second thing he said is they wanted someone else elected. It is that second statement that is
29:45completely irresponsible on the part of Mr. Trump, because there's absolutely no evidence of
29:48any of that. And for the Indian government, for the pro-BJP side, from Amit Malviya in the IT cell,
29:55to seize on that is actually a second issue that we have to talk about, which is that it taps
30:01a deep insecurity within Indian politics right now about the role of civil society,
30:06about the role of a free media, and the notion that any funding going to train media journalists,
30:12just looking at the information on your screen, on our screens right now, the kind of projects
30:16that are funded, or to fund voter turnout is inherently anti-Mr. Modi, inherently anti-government,
30:23and therefore inherently anti-India is deeply problematic. At the end of the day, every paisa
30:28that enters India from a foreign fund to an NGO is more scrutinized over the last decade
30:36than at any previous time. This is incredibly impossible. It's impossible to imagine
30:41that money in the amounts of millions of flowing into India to NGOs under the current government's
30:47watch, and they have absolutely no clue as to how the money was being spent,
30:52or what the memoranda of understanding were governing that. If that's true, that's actually
30:56an admission on their part of gross negligence. And I don't believe that that's what they're
31:00trying to say. Yeah, yeah. But let's, you know, you're saying that the whole notion of America
31:06getting deeply involved in enhancing voter turnout seems prima facie to be a bit strange
31:13in the context of India, but KC Singh documents show that it has gone to Bangladesh, which had an
31:18election, and then there was the controversy over the manner in which the election was conducted,
31:22eventually led to Sheikh Hasina leaving the country, a student's revolt. So this notion
31:27that America is interfering, you see, there is this subtext that America wants to interfere
31:32and destabilize governments in South Asia. And that's being preyed upon. Do you believe that
31:38that's there is a genuine fear? Or is this classic foreign hand started by Indira Gandhi in the 1970s,
31:44now taken to another level by the Modi government? Look, it's been talked about openly for a long
31:51time that they were unhappy with with Sheikh Hasina. That's not a secret. And when she went,
31:57very clearly India has hinted everybody has hinted that there is an American hand in this. But no,
32:04nowhere does it say that the US government, the last one or this one wants to remove Mr. Modi,
32:09Mr. Modi is one of the most pro US Prime Minister's India has had. Why would they want to replace him,
32:15replace him with what a government and you know, a UPA government, you don't know what the policy
32:22of that government may be. The BJP says it's not it's not it's not the US government. This is the
32:27deep state, the likes of George Soros. George Soros can send his own money. Nobody is claiming
32:34he it's his money that has come. They're saying it's US governments, US aid money, which is for
32:40which they are accountable to their legislature and people are accountable here who are receiving
32:46that money. So it becomes so. But this foreign hand thing is a very old gambit. It's not new.
32:52Anytime any leader feels he needs a stick to beat the opposition with, you pull out this argument
32:58of a foreign hand. Though at the moment, Mr. Modi is under no threat from the opposition at the
33:03moment. So I don't see why what was the need for it unless the idea is keep the opposition
33:08as suppressed as you possibly can. You know, that that's precisely the point,
33:14you've dealt with America over the years. This is a period when there is a bipartisan consensus
33:19consensus between Republicans and Democrats to have a pro India approach to relations
33:26in South Asia. The old style hyphenation of India Park is over. They've hyphenated it.
33:31India is the focus. So why would anyone in the US want to jeopardize that relationship using USAID?
33:38And then when George Soros, his name is tossed around, it seems that it's only used to keep the
33:43pot boiling. Is the guy should the government of the day be telling these IT cell warriors of theirs
33:50lay off? You're only embarrassing us. No, talking about somebody trying to influence the elections,
33:59he's aiming at Biden because Biden is not supposed to have had a good relationship with
34:04India. And therefore, there were these rumors that he was trying to declare India
34:09non-democratic, etc. So he used that. But the whole thing, as I said earlier, is not aimed
34:15against India at all. This is a cost cutting exercise is to paying and looking for evidence.
34:21In fact, in all this, the most ridiculous thing is there was confusion between water and water,
34:27whether this was for waters to turn out or to improve the water supply situation in India.
34:33So that is the ridiculous interpretations being given. So I don't think it is a serious matter to
34:41be, you know, should we just ignore? Are you saying, Mr. Srinivasan, we should ignore that?
34:47You know, Donald Trump may well come tomorrow morning and say, look, I've given 25 million
34:51dollars in, you know, the previous government gave 25 million dollars to the Modi government
34:58for allegedly issues related to democracy. Should we just ignore the man? Is that the way to do it?
35:04Can you ignore the president of the United States? Yes. Yes. In this particular case,
35:11you can you can at least wait till he comes back. I don't think we'll hear about it anymore.
35:15You know, Irfan, you're smiling through this. You know, you're in Washington,
35:19so you probably know a little bit more about the way Donald Trump operates.
35:23Should the Indian government deal with him? You know, be ready at times to just ignore what he
35:29says rather than react every time Donald Trump opens his mouth. You know, if we all have to learn
35:36how to ignore Donald Trump, we're going to go insane over the next four years. But the Indian
35:40government has to be secure in its own policies, its own regulations of the cuff
35:47allegation that has been contradicted by the president himself, as your reporting suggested
35:52four different statements that get the facts that change the facts. We cannot be reacting every time
35:57he says something. The next thing he might say might be something that's about PLI. It's about
36:02manufacturing. He called India the tariff king. Right. The truth of the matter is that Donald
36:08Trump says what he thinks his audience wants to hear in a given moment. We have to know what is
36:13actually true and we have to do the facts. You asked earlier whether or not the IT cell should
36:18be told to calm down. It should. Think of the position that those tweets are putting the MEA
36:24in. If Dr. Jaishankar wants to do a serious probe and come out, the facts are going to show that
36:29there was no malfeasance over here. But the narrative construction being conducted by other
36:36elements supportive of the government will suggest that any such finding is prima facie
36:43incorrect, cannot be believed because they've already linked it to George Soros. They've already
36:47linked it to all sorts of other sorts of allegations. So, a serious government is secured
36:52in knowing what exactly is happening in its own country and can say, we know, we have vetted,
36:58no money comes from USA that doesn't get vetted through here. We know who the recipients are.
37:03There are records on the books. We know when the money was spent. USAID projects are incredibly
37:10detailed about the exact activities to be done. So, even something called voter participation
37:15could simply be helping people understand, you know, how to read the news, how to understand
37:21polls. That is not nefarious work, right? And there should be documents at MHA for each of
37:28these contracts. And if that's not, that's a separate set of issues that we should be
37:32asking why our government is allowing money to come in under the rules.
37:36I want to give KC 30 seconds to wrap this up for us. Should we have a white paper at all,
37:42as the opposition in India is now calling for? Or should we just now let sleeping dogs lie,
37:47let Donald Trump say what he wants and not react? A quick reaction from you.
37:52I said, look at the irony of it. Who is saying that voters have been increased in the state
37:57elections? It's the opposition claiming it, that the ruling party has done it in Maharashtra,
38:02in Haryana, and so on. The ruling party is not saying that the opposition has increased the
38:06voters. Well, I think the lesson is that as long as Trump is president, he's already being
38:13domestically attacked. He'll be sufficiently weakened, some say even within weeks, if not
38:18months, because in town hall meetings, people are standing up and questioning even Republican
38:25congressmen. So there is a huge churn which is taking place. In the meanwhile, keep your seat
38:32belts tightened. Do not react every time Trump says something, but also do question them. Don't
38:39go silent. You don't need to provoke him. But you can't also let it go, let it pass because you are
38:46the largest democracy in the world. You can't be just sitting silently, nor using it to attack the
38:51opposition. So I think the lesson is, treat it with a degree of confidence in your own nation.
38:58Quietly contradict him. By the same time, be ready for some more shocks as we go forward.
39:05Okay, we'll leave it there, KC Singh. Hopefully, some of the BJPs, IT cell warriors,
39:10and indeed, the opposition is also listening. The last thing we want is to get Indian politics
39:16tangled in actually what is a policy debate taking place in the United States, and Trump
39:22using it to target his rivals there, and then we end up embarrassing ourselves in the process. Thank
39:28you very much to my guests for joining me. I want to turn from there to one of our special reports
39:32tonight, which is coming from my part of the country. The border between Karnataka and Maharashtra
39:39has often been tangled in the area around Belgavi. As tension simmers once again over
39:46the linguistic issues, both states have stopped bus services to each other. Why? Well, first,
39:52a Karnataka bus conductor was allegedly targeted for not speaking in Marathi. Later, a Maharashtra
39:59bus was attacked. Take a look at that longstanding simmering feud over the border dispute between
40:06Maharashtra and Karnataka.
40:21The dispute between Karnataka and Maharashtra over Belgavi turns ugly. Bus services between
40:27the two states are halted after tensions over the use of Kannada. A conductor on a Karnataka
40:33State Road Transport Corporation bus was assaulted last week for allegedly not communicating in Marathi.
41:03One of the bus passengers, a minor girl, later filed a counter complaint
41:08alleging harassment by the conductor. As anger over the incident spread,
41:14a Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation staff was allegedly targeted in Karnataka.
41:23In retaliation, buses with Karnataka registration were defaced in Maharashtra.
41:33They were talking in Marathi. He told that, I don't know Marathi, you talk in Kannada. At that
41:40time, that boy and two, three others, they beaten our conductor. Police arrested and
41:52they have given, court has given for custody, for 14 days custody.
41:57With bus services between the two states hit, ordinary citizens are the worst hit.
42:28The Karnataka Rakshana Vedic has called for Belgavi Chalo March on Tuesday.
42:47The boundary dispute between Maharashtra and Karnataka dates back to 1956,
42:53when the states were reorganized on the basis of languages.
43:02Maharashtra claims Belgavi, which has a sizable Marathi-speaking population.
43:09A petition filed by the Maharashtra government in the Supreme Court is pending since 2004.
43:16With Sagar Raj, Bureau Report, India Today.
43:22Let's just switch to the world of cricket because Rohit Sharma and the men in blue have planted
43:28one foot firmly into the semi-finals of the Champions Trophy with a comprehensive six-wicket
43:33win over Pakistan in Dubai on Sunday in a match that eventually turned out to be a one-sided
43:38affair. Virat Kohli's century led India's chase. It was his 51st century in the one-day format.
43:46And the fact is that as Virat made all the headlines, Pakistan is making the headlines
43:52for all the wrong reasons. Across Pakistan, there is plenty of hand-wringing. What's gone
43:57wrong with Pakistani cricket? And that's the question I want to pose to Farishteh Aslam.
44:03She's a Pakistan journalist based in Karachi. And I'm also joined at this moment by Nikhil Naz,
44:08our consulting sports editor, who is at the moment in Dubai on his way to Lahore.
44:15First to you, Nikhil, because I know you've got a flight to catch.
44:20It appears that the Pakistanis also are all set to go back home because they're not going to
44:25progress in the Champions Trophy. They just weren't good enough, were they, yesterday?
44:30India in another league.
44:36Absolutely right, Rajdeep. In fact, if you look at the two teams now,
44:40and this is something that even the staunchest of Pakistan supporters feared, that they were
44:45hoping for a Pakistan win, but they were hoping against hope. And they knew in the back of their
44:49head that it's going to be a massive task for Pakistan to beat India. But in the manner that
44:54the Pakistan team capitulated, I think that's disappointed most fans here as well. It was
45:00being built up as the mother of all battles, the big clash. But in the end, the contest that we
45:06were all building it up to be, it turned out to be a no contest. You could see it, and I'm not
45:11even looking at the margin of runs or the number of deliveries left. That's another thing. But just
45:16everything else about the match. Pakistan had this big partnership. There are 100 for just two,
45:21but just look at the manner in which they were batting. Less than six and over, somewhere around
45:25four and over. Look at India, cruising to victory, yet the batters that are coming to bat are
45:30ensuring that you're batting at six plus and over. So it's not just about the margin of victory,
45:34Rajdeep, but even the mentality where one team has the fear of failure, quite apparent, but the other
45:40team is not just playing to win. They're actually there to make a statement. And that's what the
45:44Indian team has done. So there is a big, big gulf. And as I said, this is something that people
45:49were fearing. This could have been the last straw. Every time they were hoping that, okay, Pakistan
45:55can turn a corner. Maybe this time they'll upset the Indian team. But now pretty much every Pakistani
46:00fan that I've spoken to has conceded that there is no competition. As far as Indian fans are
46:05concerned, I spoke to a lot of them. They're saying this isn't even the rivalry that they
46:08really bother about. Those butterflies in the stomach that you would have, Indian fans would
46:12have in the 90s, 80s, early 2000s. They say no more butterflies. India, Australia, give us India,
46:18Australia any day. Let me take that to a Pakistani fan, Jandis Farishteh Aslam. Farishteh and I are
46:24on a WhatsApp group. And I know lots of you are berating the Pakistani team. You've had four board
46:29presidents in the last four years. You've had 26 selectors in the last three years, four captains.
46:36What's wrong with Pakistani cricket at the moment, Farishteh?
46:41What's right with it, Rajdeep? I think Pakistan has to do a deep, deep dive into finding that
46:51spot where they can admit to themselves that there is a lot that has to be corrected. The
46:57rod starts from the top. We know that. And if they can get that right, that is the first step.
47:04So is it a talent pool deficit on the field? Because we don't even see that
47:10efflorescence of talent, especially in spin bowling. Is it an administrative problem?
47:16It is completely administrative. And even in the past, Pakistan cricket succeeded despite
47:22the administrative flaws and not because of the genius organization that was served up.
47:27But today what has happened is that I think there's too much reliance on past cricketers
47:35and what they have to say, because not every cricketer, however good he was on the field,
47:40is an able administrator. And certainly Pakistan has suffered because of that.
47:45In rotation, everyone has been tried and nobody's come up trumps. No, Pakistan has to do a lot of
47:53deep searching. They need to figure out how cricket does not need to be handed over to
48:00bureaucrats. Bureaucrats, politicians know nothing about sport and they need to take a
48:06leap from global. I know India follows the politician route, but that's not quite the
48:12right thing to do on a sports field. So you mean... From what you're saying,
48:18from what you're saying, Farishteh, that talent exists, but the politics and the bureaucrats
48:24have taken over the sport in a manner that that talent is not allowed to flourish.
48:28Is that what you're saying? Look, as we said on that chat group,
48:31if you put this lot that's in charge right now, you put an 18-year-old Insi in front of them,
48:37he can bat all day, they will not be able to recognize his genius. You put a 17-year-old
48:43in front of them and they'll say,
48:47because they just don't have it in them to recognize talent. You need sport, needs to be
48:54managed by people who know sport, by people who understand players. And I think in Pakistan,
49:00there's none of that right now. And Pakistan is plus planning for the long term. I bet you now,
49:09our next tournament, I think is six months away and nobody's planning for that right now. They'll
49:14start planning for it one month before. The grounds go into disrepair. Nobody's planning.
49:19I mean, this champion's trophy was on the cards. Why were the grounds not ready till about two
49:25weeks ago? What Pakistan needs is a long-term view. I mean, every cricket team goes through it.
49:32I remember a time when Australia was so completely dependent on Alan Border. There was nobody else,
49:38but Alan Border batted them through and they worked on their cricket. They worked on Shield
49:43cricket. They made things happen for themselves and gradually became the champions that they are.
49:50India, a varsity of fast bowlers, set up MRF clinics, first in Chennai and then all across
49:58India. And look at the benefits of that. There is nothing like that happening in Pakistan.
50:03And the sad news is, of course, the greatest Pakistani cricketer arguably is in jail.
50:11And this is a moment where even if you don't want Imran Khan as your prime minister,
50:15you certainly want Imran Khan to hopefully show the way to the Pakistan cricket team,
50:21at least to fight. I think the one thing that stood out for us Indian fans is the complete
50:26lack of fight in a way in this Pakistan team, the lack of intent and the fear of failure
50:32that Nikhil Naz spoke about earlier. But look, Farishteh, I hope we can rekindle those Indo-Pak
50:39cricket rivalries genuinely. I hope that the Pakistan cricket team reaches the stage where
50:44you will have a competitive match with India, because there's nothing better than that. But
50:49for now, I guess a lot of soul searching to be done across the border when it comes to cricket.
50:53Thanks very much, Farishteh, for joining us. I hope someone out there is listening to you
50:58and sharing your angst, lots of angst when you lose in an Indo-Pak cricket match. Now,
51:05one person who doesn't have to have angst at the moment is Virat Kohli. He's had a tough time of it
51:10in recent months. But commit the hour, commit the man. When it comes to one day cricket,
51:16white ball cricket, he is the ultimate chase master. His fitness is quite incredible,
51:21and that enables him in a way to pace his innings perfectly. That's what he did and
51:26became the fastest batter to reach 14,000 ODI runs. Whether he can retrieve his test match mojo,
51:35we don't know. But when it comes to one day cricket, Virat Kohli is, in my view,
51:41the greatest batsman of this generation. I leave you with King Virat or King Kohli back in form.
51:48You stay well, stay safe. Good night. Shubhratri. Jai Hind. Namaskar.
51:57Big day, and it was the big boy who stepped up for his team.
52:06When Virat Kohli dispatched a Haris Rao delivery to the boundary with a delightful cover drive,
52:12you knew he was in for something special.
52:20It proved to be a shot that wrote his name in the history books yet again.
52:27The former India captain zoomed to 14,000 runs in ODI cricket, becoming just the third player
52:34after Sachin Tendulkar and Kumar Sangakkara to do so. But was much faster than even the
52:41legendary master blaster. He loves taking on the arch nemesis and dissed out another Virat special.
52:52In the gap. The chase master who has hurt plenty of teams in the past,
53:04inflicted the ultimate jolt to the team that denied India the champion's trophy
53:09eight years back. And Virat Kohli charges straight away, putting pressure.
53:16His masterful innings also took him to the top of the pile
53:19among players with most 50 plus scores while chasing in a way on neutral venues in ODIs.
53:28Virat led India's charge in dealing Pakistan a body blow, one which more or less dumps them
53:35out of the champion's trophy. Sports Bureau, India Today.