India’s Ruling Party Accuses U.S. State Department of Attempting to Destabilize the Country
The BJP, India’s ruling Hindu nationalist party, recently sparked controversy by accusing the U.S. State Department of orchestrating an agenda aimed at destabilizing India. This dramatic accusation has fueled a heated debate within India’s Parliament and ignited a heated exchange between the BJP and its political rivals.
The BJP has alleged that Washington, in collaboration with figures like billionaire George Soros, is providing financial backing to journalists to publish reports critical of India. These reports, according to the BJP, are thenweaponized by the opposition Congress party to tarnish the image of India and its leader.
“The U.S. State Department is behind this agenda,” declared the BJP on social media. “They are using journalists to spread misinformation and undermine us.”
The principal target of these accusations is the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), a consortium of investigative journalists that has published several articles on India, some of which have implicated prominent individuals associated with the BJP.
The OCCRP has acknowledged receiving funding from six governments, including the United States, but they vehemently deny that these governments have any influence on their editorial decisions. The U.S. State Department has also denied involvement in influencing OCCRP’s coverage. Despite these denials, the BJP maintains that the Congress party frequently utilizes OCCRP reports to attack the BJP and its supporters, including billionaire Gautam Adani, a close ally of Prime MinisterModi.
Just last month, Adani was accused by the U.S. Justice Department of participating in a scheme to pay hundreds of millions of dollars in bribes and conceal these payments from U.S. investors. Sharon Adani’s company has vehemently denied these allegations, labeling them as baseless.
Anand Mangnale, an Indian journalist and activist who contributed a separate investigation report for OCCRP focusing on Adani’s business practices, refuted the BJP’s claims, stating that he never received instructions on what to report.
“Of course not,” anything that. No interview he responded.
Despite Mangnale’s denial, he was identified by the BJP this week on their social media platforms. Mangnale explains the narrative put forth by the BJP:
“It’s not an attack on Adani, but an attack on India because Soros doesn’t like Modi, and Adani is close to Modi. So they’re trying to destroy the Indian economy.”
James Crabtree, a fellow at Asia Society, a prominent think tank, offers an alternative interpretation:
“It’s unusual for a political party to attack the State Department in this way,” he noted.
Crabtree believes the BJP’s accusations are a strategic maneuver to target their domestic political rivals rather than a genuine concern about U.S. interference.
“What they’re doing is using the State Department to attack their domestic political opponents. So while from the United States it might look like an anti-American broadside, really it’s an attack on the Congress party and Rahul Gandhi.”
Members of the Congress party have vehemently denied the BJP’s accusations. Neither India’s embassy in Washington nor the Adani Group has responded to requests for comment.
What evidence does the BJP cite to support its claim of US interference in Indian affairs?
## Interview: India’s Ruling Party Alleges US Interference
**Host:** We’re joined today by Dr. Anjali Kumar, a specialist in South Asian politics at the Institute of International Relations. Dr. Kumar, India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party has made some explosive claims, accusing the US State Department of attempting to destabilize the country. Can you shed some light on this situation?
**Dr. Kumar:** The BJP has accused the US State Department of funding journalists through organizations like the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project, or OCCRP, to publish negative reports about India. They allege these reports are then used by the opposition Congress party to attack the BJP and damage India’s reputation. [[1](https://www.business-standard.com/external-affairs-defense-security/news/us-state-department-deep-state-trying-to-destabilise-india-bjp-on-occrp-124120600989_1.html)
**Host:** This sounds like a serious allegation. What is the evidence provided by the BJP to support these claims?
**Dr. Kumar:** The evidence presented so far is largely circumstantial. The BJP points to OCCRP’s funding from various governments, including the United States. However, OCCRP has vehemently denied any government influence on its editorial decisions. The US State Department has also denied involvement.
**Host:** How has the opposition Congress party responded to these accusations?
**Dr. Kumar:** The Congress party has welcomed the OCCRP reports, viewing them as important investigations into potentially corrupt practices within the BJP. They deny using these reports for partisan attacks and insist their criticism of the BJP is based on its own policies and actions.
**Host:** What are the potential implications of these accusations for US-India relations?
**Dr. Kumar:** This situation could strain relations between the two countries. Accusations of foreign interference are always sensitive, and India might feel the need to reevaluate its cooperation with the US if these tensions persist.
**Host:** Thank you, Dr. Kumar, for sharing your insights on this complex issue.
**Dr. Kumar:** My pleasure.
