We, citizens of Rajasthan, wish to make clear that US Vice-President JD Vance is not welcome in this state. India is not for sale.
We, the undersigned, stand with the farmers of India who have been protesting against corporate interference in agriculture and demanding a law on the Minimum Support Price relentlessly for four years. It is well known that US Vice President J.D. Vance’s visit to India is to negotiate a bilateral trade deal, reduce tariff and non-tariff barriers for American products including agricultural products. Successive US Governments, including the present one, have stressed that India must open up its agricultural markets and agriculture cannot be “left out” of negotiations for a bilateral trade deal. It is our belief that these discussions would be a death knell for not only agriculture but also livestock farmers. This would result in US dairy exports to India surge once tariffs and market restrictions are lifted, affecting the Rajasthan economy drastically, as it is heavily dependent on cattle and livestock products, including dairy and wool production. Similarly, there is pressure to lift India’s import ban on genetically modified maize as well as ethanol, from which the US is expected to reap windfall gains. We are angry that such deals would throw the already vulnerable Indian cotton farmers in a worse condition.
India’s Complicity with USA – Surrendering of National Interests
We object to the Government of India complicity in conducting these trade talks, without taking the state governments or the Parliament into confidence. Such compromises do not even assure the implementation of international labour standards. While countries like China, Canada, Mexico etc. have strongly resisted the Trump tariffs and united to protect their economic interests, India has chosen to surrender its national interests.
Apart from the impact on agriculture, the interests of MSMEs in sectors ranging from generic pharmaceuticals to automobiles parts production are going to be affected. Lakhs of workers in these sectors are also going to be adversely impacted.
JD Vance’s role in the ongoing Genocide of Palestinians
We also object to Vance’s trip to Rajasthan and India, as he has been a strong advocate of unconditional support to Israel right through the last 18 months of invasion, bombing, displacement, starvation and genocide in Gaza. As he lands in Jaipur, Gaza is enduring the 563rd day of genocide. Israel is purposely creating famine conditions in Gaza, destroying hospitals, preventing any entry of humanitarian aid, and even targeting water desalination plants. As the Vice-President of Israel’s principal ally, supporter, funder and arms supplier (the United States), Vance is fully complicit with these war crimes.
We would like to highlight that the USA’s stand on Israel symbolises and perpetuates a long history of US terrorism and war crimes around the world. In the last 75 years, the United States have invaded, bombed or destabilized Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Chile, Congo, Cuba, El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala, Iraq, Iraq, Korea, Lao, Libya, Nicaragua, Syria, Ukraine, Vietnam, Yemen, Yugoslavia, just to mention 20 target countries. Many of these countries (including Chile, Congo, Iran and Nicaragua) had democratically elected governments before the United States toppled them on behalf of American interests, or rather the interests of American business. In spite of this, the United States tries to project itself as the torchbearer of democracy and freedom.
We Indians know better, thank you!!
Vance and his views are also a threat to US democracy itself. During the last few months, civil liberties and media freedom in the US have been severely curtailed. Legal residents and even some US citizens have been arrested and deported without due process. This has affected the Indian students in a major way, who have had their studies cut midway and face a bleak future. Vance is among those who led this charge. He went so far as to challenge the authority of the courts. He is a danger to the US public, and to the world at large.
The manner in which Indian immigrants whose papers were in question, were deported in the most dehumanising conditions, with shackles and chains – shows the utter disrespect for India national in the eyes of the USA Administration. Vance also reinstated the twitter account that notoriously tweeted “Normalise Indian Hate” which plays a role in deepening the fault lines in an already polarised India.
Our country’s future is in our own hands and we don’t want any interference from the USA or its Vice-President in our policies!
All India Kisan Sabha Ajay Bhawan
Tara Singh Siddhu, National Vice President
All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS)
Dr. Sanjay Madhav, State Joint Secretary, Rajasthan
PUCL
Kavita Srivastava, President
Bhanwar Meghwanshi, State President, Rajasthan
Prem Kishan Sharma, Former President
Anant Bhatnagar, State Secretary, Rajasthan
CPI
Narendra Acharya, Secretary
Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Samiti
Shankar Singh
Nikhil Dey
Co-ordination Committee of Women Workers (CITU),
Sumitra Chopra, State Convenor
AIPSO, Rajasthan
Sunita Chaturvedi, State General Secretary
National Federation of Indian Women (NFIW)
Nisha Siddhu, National General Secretary
Minakshi Bindoriya, Working President
Democratic Youth Federation of India
Ritansh Azad, District Secreatary
All India Democratic Women’s Association
Kusum Saiwal, State Joint Secretary
Student Federation of India
Yuvraj Kaswa, Joint Secretary
And
Communist Party of India, Communist Party of India (Marxist)
Contact : Kavita Srivastava (9351562965) , Dr. Sanjay Madhav (9680872502)
