Trump says he has 'great' relations with Modi, India will cut tariff
New York, Oct 1 : United States President Donald Trump said on Monday that he has a "great" relationship with Prime Minister Narendra Modi who has told him that India is going to reduce substantially the tariffs on imports from the US.
He said that "tariff king" India on its own has reached out to the US to make a trade deal, without Washington calling New Delhi for negotiations.
He was speaking at a White House news conference on the revised North American Trade Agreement with Canada and Mexico -- a landmark deal that fulfills one of his election promises.
Answering a question from a reporter, he said, "I have spoken Prime Minister Modi and he is going to reduce them (tariffs) very substantially."
He added, "My relationship with India is great, with Prime Minister Modi is great. And they are going to start doing a lot."
Scoring a domestic political point, he asserted that as in the case of the NAFTA and and other trade issues, none of the previous presidents or trade representatives had spoken to India about the high tariffs.
He quoted Modi as telling him, "Nobody every spoke to me" about the high tariffs.
"They (India) have called us to make a deal, we didn't even call them; they called us to make a deal, which is like shocking to people," he added.
Trump explained that he called India a "tariff king" because "it charges us tremendous tariffs."
He cited the example Harley Davidson motorcycles, which would resonate with bikers who are a section of his electoral base, saying that India charged 100 per cent duties on it.
He said, "That is so high that it is like barrier, in other words who is going to buy it if it costs you so much."
"Now they have reduced that substantially, but it is still too high," he asserted.
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CM Siddaramaiah alleges ‘criminal conspiracy’ in Sringeri recount, vows legal action
Bengaluru (PTI): Alleging a “criminal conspiracy” by BJP candidate D N Jeevaraj in the Sringeri Assembly poll recounting, Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said the outcome was manipulated after valid postal ballot votes in favour of Congress leader T D Raje Gowda were tampered with during the recounting process.
Following a Karnataka High Court order on an election petition filed by Jeevaraj, challenging Raje Gowda’s election, the reverification and recounting were conducted on Saturday.
After the reverification and recount of postal ballots for the Sringeri Assembly constituency, votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda were reduced by 255, the returning officer said.
A report on the matter has been submitted to the Election Commission of India for further action, the officer added.
Congress leader Raje Gowda had won the 2023 Assembly polls from Sringeri by 201 votes, defeating his nearest rival Jeevaraj.
Addressing a press conference in Bengaluru, Siddaramaiah said the High Court had directed the recounting of postal ballots and that irregularities were noticed during the exercise conducted on May 2.
“This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” Siddaramaiah said, alleging that valid votes cast in favour of Raje Gowda were altered after being accepted by counting agents of all parties, including Congress, BJP, and JD(S).
He claimed that during the recounting of postal ballots, 255 votes were initially accepted as valid by all agents but were later tampered with by subordinate officials.
“There is a second mark on the votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda. They had accepted these as valid votes. Subsequently, another mark was made by officials. This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” he said.
When asked who was behind the alleged conspiracy, the CM replied, “It was hatched by Jeevaraj and others. It is planned.”
Siddaramaiah further alleged that the returning officer acted improperly by declaring the result despite the presence of an Election Commission observer during the recounting.
“Immediately after the counting, the returning officer announced the result. He should not have done so; this is against the law,” he said.
He pointed out that Raje Gowda had originally won by 201 votes, but after the recounting, the BJP candidate was declared the winner by 52 votes.
“The BJP has committed a criminal act of conspiracy. This is not vote chori but vote dacoity,” he alleged.
The CM said a police complaint had already been filed by Raje Gowda’s election agent, Sudhir Kumar, and emphasised the need for electoral integrity.
“We want transparency and free and fair elections. That is what our Constitution mandates,” he added.
Stating that the government would pursue legal remedies, Siddaramaiah said, “We are preparing an appeal challenging the returning officer’s announcement in a court of law.”
Responding to a separate query on elections in other states, the CM said there appeared to be an anti-incumbency factor in West Bengal, while results in Tamil Nadu were “surprising,” adding that Vijay’s party was emerging as the largest there.
Following the victory of party candidates in Bagalkote and Davanagere South, Siddaramaiah expressed confidence about future electoral prospects in Karnataka.
“Even in 2028, we will win the Assembly elections. We will come back,” the CM said.
Siddaramaiah added that he would order a forensic examination into the alleged tampering of postal ballots.
