"We All Know...": Shashi Tharoor Differs With Rahul Gandhi Over Trump Remarks

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Friday rejected Donald Trump's remarks that India is "a dead economy" and said "it is not the case", a day after his party leader Rahul Gandhi endorsed the US President's statement.

"This is not the case, and we all know it," Mr Tharoor told reporters outside Parliament when asked about Mr Trump's comment.

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— ANI (@ANI) August 1, 2025

Mr Trump on Thursday attacked India and Russia, saying he does not care about New Delhi's dealings with Moscow and that the two "can take their dead economies down together".

"I don't care what India does with Russia. They can take their dead economies down together, for all I care. We have done very little business with India, their tariffs are too high, among the highest in the world. Likewise, Russia and the USA do almost no business together. Let's keep it that way," he wrote on Truth Social, a day after announcing 25 per cent tariffs on imports from India and an additional penalty for buying Russian military equipment and energy.

Hours later, Rahul Gandhi said he agreed with Mr Trump.

"He is right, everybody knows this except the Prime Minister and the Finance Minister. I am glad that President Trump has stated a fact," Mr Gandhi, the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, told reporters at Parliament.

Congress MP Karti Chidambaram on Friday also distanced himself from Mr Gandhi's remark, saying Mr Trump is an "unconventional politician".

"India and America are large economies that need each other. We also have people-to-people ties. Flipping comments made by the president of the United States are not going to derail this relationship in the long run," he told NDTV.

"President Trump has made similar comments about many countries and many international personalities, but he's eventually gone on to come to some sort of understanding with them," Mr Chidambaram added.

Rajya Sabha MP Rajiv Shukla also said Mr Trump's statement is "completely wrong".

"Our economic condition is not at all weak. If someone claims they can finish us economically, it's likely due to a misunderstanding. Trump is living in a delusion," he told news agency ANI on Thursday.