Trump makes racist attack on India; MEA calls it uninformed
Hours after US President Donald Trump amplified a controversial podcast describing India as a “hellhole,” Washington moved quickly to contain the diplomatic fallout, with its embassy in New Delhi issuing a statement underscoring strong bilateral ties.
“The President has said ‘India is a great country with a very good friend of mine at the top,’” a US Embassy spokesperson said, in a calibrated attempt to steady relations. The clean-up followed Trump’s reposting of remarks by conservative commentator Michael Savage, who, during a podcast, grouped India and China among “hellholes” while arguing against birthright citizenship in the United States. Savage criticized laws granting citizenship to children born on American soil, alleging that immigrants — particularly from Asian countries — exploit the system.
“A baby here becomes an instant citizen, and then they bring in their entire family from China, or India or some other hellhole on the planet,” he said.
India on Thursday described as "uninformed" and "inappropriate" the social media repost by US President Trump. "We have seen the comments, as also the subsequent statement issued by the US embassy in response," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said. "The remarks are obviously uninformed, inappropriate and in poor taste. They certainly do not reflect the reality of the India-US relationship, which has long been based on mutual respect and shared interests," he added.
Despite the restrained official response, the controversy has sparked political reactions domestically. The Indian National Congress condemned the remarks as “extremely insulting and anti-India,” urging Prime Minister Narendra Modi to raise the issue with Washington.
The controversy deepened after Trump also reshared an anti-immigrant post on his platform Truth Social that used derogatory language about India and China, intensifying debate around US citizenship laws. The post criticized birthright citizenship and claimed that immigrant communities undermine cultural integration-assertions widely criticized as misleading and inflammatory.
It further alleged systemic bias in employment and immigration systems, claiming internal mechanisms disproportionately favour individuals from India and China, and argued that the United States has shifted from a “melting pot” to a “cash-in pot.”
Trump’s amplification of such rhetoric risks complicating ties between Washington and New Delhi, even as both Governments continue to publicly emphasize the strength of their strategic partnership.
