Ruling party accuses US of attempting to destabilize India

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has accused the U.S. State Department and elements of the "deep state" of attempting to destabilize India in collaboration with a group of investigative journalists and opposition leader Rahul Gandhi.

This accusation comes as a surprise given the strong relationship between New Delhi and Washington in recent years, with both nations vowing to strengthen ties despite some differences.

The BJP's accusations were made in response to articles published by the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), which focused on the Adani Group and its alleged closeness to the Indian government. On December 5, the ruling party claimed that Gandhi's Congress party used these articles to undermine Modi. The BJP emphasized that the OCCRP’s reports were biased and solely focused on the Adani Group, Caliber.Az reports via foreign media.

Gautam Adani, the chair of the Adani Group, and seven others were indicted in the U.S. last month for being allegedly involved in a $265 million bribery scheme targeting Indian officials—charges that the group has dismissed as "baseless." The OCCRP has also accused Indian state-sponsored hackers of using Israeli-made Pegasus spyware to target government critics, a claim that the Indian government has previously denied.

The BJP has frequently accused Gandhi, the OCCRP, and 92-year-old billionaire financier-philanthropist George Soros of attacking Modi. On Thursday, the party referenced a French media report which suggested that the OCCRP was funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and other figures from the "deep state," including Soros.

"The Deep State had a clear objective to destabilise India by targeting Prime Minister Modi," the BJP said in a series of posts on X. "It has always been the U.S. State Department behind this agenda...OCCRP has served as a media tool for carrying out a deep state agenda," it added.

A spokesperson for the U.S. State Department responded by stating that the U.S. government provides support for the professional development and capacity building of journalists, but this "does not influence the editorial decisions or direction of these organizations." "It's disappointing that the ruling party in India would make these kinds of accusations," the spokesperson said.

Sambit Patra, a BJP national spokesperson, reiterated the party's accusations during an official media briefing on December 5. "A French investigative media group...has revealed that... 50% of OCCRP's funding comes directly from the U.S. State Department," Patra claimed. "OCCRP has served as a media tool for carrying out a deep state agenda."

The Congress party, Soros, and the Indian Ministry of External Affairs did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the allegations.

In response, OCCRP issued a statement asserting its independence. "The U.S. government, while providing some funding to OCCRP, has no say in our editorial processes and no control over our reporting," the organization stated.

Meanwhile, the Indian government is facing increasing scrutiny over the U.S. indictment of Gautam Adani, whom opposition leaders accuse Modi of protecting. Last week, the Indian parliament was repeatedly suspended as opposition lawmakers demanded a discussion on the matter. Both Modi's BJP and the Adani Group have denied the accusations.

By Vugar Khalilov