'He has his reasons': Shashi Tharoor sidesteps Rahul Gandhi's 'dead economy' remark; raises trade concerns

NEW DELHI: Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Saturday refused to comment on Rahul Gandhi ’s endorsement of US President Donald Trump ’s remark calling the Indian economy "dead." Tharoor said the leader of opposition in Lok Sabha may have had his "own reasons" for saying so, but stressed that maintaining economic ties with the US is vital for India.

Also Read: Rajeev Shukla, Shashi Tharoor contradict Rahul Gandhi's stance on economy

When asked about Rahul Gandhi's statement, Tharoor said, "I don't want to comment on what my party leader has said. He has his reasons for saying so. My concern is that our relationship with the US, as a strategic partnership and economic relationship, is important for us. We are exporting around 90 billion worth of goods to America. We can't be in a position to lose that or have it diminish significantly."


He added, "We must wish our negotiators strength to get a fair deal for India. We should also be talking to other regions for exporting our goods. Then we could make up for some of what we might lose in the US. We have to support our negotiators."

#WATCH | Mumbai | On Lok Sabha LoP and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi agreeing with US President Donald Trump's 'dead economy' remark, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor says, "I don't want to comment on what my party leader has said. He has his reasons for saying so. My concern is that our… pic.twitter.com/zwJm4v4vRV

— ANI (@ANI) August 2, 2025

Tharoor’s response came after Rahul Gandhi, on Thursday, agreed with Trump’s description of the Indian economy. Gandhi had said, "Yes, he is right. Everybody knows this except the prime minister and the finance minister. Everybody knows that the Indian economy is a dead economy. I am glad that President Trump has stated a fact. The entire world knows that the Indian economy is a dead economy. BJP has finished the economy to help Adani."

Trump had made the comment on Wednesday through his social media platform, Truth Social. In that post, he announced a 25 per cent tariff on Indian goods and warned of additional penalties in response to India importing oil from Russia.