Aam Admi Party’s national convener Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday called for India to impose higher tariffs on US imports and asserted that the whole country will support this decision.
During a press conference, he said, "If US President Donald Trump has imposed a 50% tariff, we should impose a 100% tariff on America. Are we a weak nation? This is a country of 140 crore people. We have a huge market."
In his statement, Kejriwal said that other countries did not bow down, instead imposed higher tariffs, and India should do the same. “No country can afford to offend India. We are a nation of 140 crore people," he further added.
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He also alleged that the BJP-led Central government has decided to waive off 11 per cent duty on cotton imported from the US, which could impact the business of local farmers.
{{/usCountry}}He also alleged that the BJP-led Central government has decided to waive off 11 per cent duty on cotton imported from the US, which could impact the business of local farmers.
{{/usCountry}}On Thursday, the government extended the duty-free import of cotton by another three months, pushing the deadline to December 31. Earlier, on August 18, the Ministry of Finance had granted a duty exemption on cotton imports from August 19 to September 30.
Stating that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's decision could prove detrimental to India's farmers, the AAP chief demanded that the government impose higher tariffs on US imports.
"India used to impose 11 per cent duty on cotton imported from America. This meant that the American cotton was costlier than homegrown cotton. But the Modi government has decided to waive off this duty from August 19 till September 30. This means that textile industries will get cheaper cotton,” Kejriwal said in the conference. He claimed that when cotton enters the market for sale in October, there will be few buyers.
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Kejriwal criticised the decision to waive the 11 per cent duty on American cotton and said the duty should have been increased to match that level rather than removed entirely. He said his party wants the Centre to reimpose the 11 per cent duty on US cotton imports.
(With Inputs from agencies)