'BJP scared to praise Atal Bihari Vajpayee, no credit given to him': Rajeev Shukla slams India-US trade deal

"We praise Narsimha Rao ji but they're scared to speak about Atal ji," Shukla said while comparing US tariff rates during Manmohan Singh and Narendra Modi era.

Congress Rajya Sabha MP Rajiv Shukla on Wednesday targeted the Modi government over the US-India trade deal which has been hailed as "historic" by American President Donald Trump. Speaking in the upper house, Shukla didn't hold back in criticising the government for allowing limited access to American products into India's agriculture market and 'ignoring' former Prime Minister and BJP stalwart Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

"Not even one speaker utters Atal ji's name. They never praise him. I listened and noted down their speeches, not even once did they praise him. I don't know what they fear. We praise Narsimha Rao ji but they're scared to speak about Atal ji," Shukla said addressing the BJP MPs.

During his address, Shukla compared the US tariff rates on India in the Atal era which averaged around three per cent and Manmohan Singh's tenure when it was around 2.92 per cent. As of early 2026, the US has imposed 18 per cent tariff on India, although, it has been reduced from 50 per cent under the new trade deal.

The said deal has created quite a storm after a India-US joint statement released last week said that New Delhi, under the Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA), will "eliminate or reduce tariffs on all U.S. industrial goods and a wide range of U.S. food and agricultural products, including dried distillers’ grains (DDGs), red sorghum for animal feed, tree nuts, fresh and processed fruit, soybean oil, wine and spirits, and additional products."

The list also included "certain pulses" which has been removed from the statement after revision.

In contrast, PM Narendra Modi as well as agriculture minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan have assured that the government still prioritises interests of Indian farmers and that the dairy sector is fully protected. Besides, the trade deal will also ensure zero-tariff market access to Indian agricultural products in the US and the imports from the American market includes no harmful product.