Chandigarh, February 8, 2026: The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Punjab has strongly condemned the so-called India–US trade deal, terming it a dangerous, anti-farmer and anti-national agreement that could severely damage Indian agriculture and push millions of farmers towards economic distress.
AAP Punjab Chief Spokesperson and MLA Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal said that BJP leader Sunil Jakhar is celebrating the deal either without understanding its consequences or by deliberately hiding the truth from farmers and the public.
“Sunil Jakhar says AAP is silent. Let me make it clear—we are not silent. We have been raising objections from the very first day this deal was announced. It is the BJP that kept the nation in the dark. The Prime Minister did not explain the deal in Parliament; instead, the country learned about it through tweets by Donald Trump,” Dhaliwal said.
Dhaliwal pointed out that Trump repeatedly used the word “agriculture” while referring to the deal, which should alarm every Indian farmer. He warned that the agreement opens Indian markets to heavily subsidised American agricultural products, directly threatening farmers who already receive minimal government support.
Threat from subsidised American farm products
Citing red sorghum as an example, Dhaliwal said that nearly 75 percent of the world’s red sorghum is produced in the United States, while in India it is grown by poor farmers in drought-prone regions of Maharashtra without any Minimum Support Price (MSP).
“If American red sorghum, corn, cotton, apples, almonds and dairy products flood Indian markets, our maize, bajra and indigenous crops will collapse. Farmers in Punjab, Haryana, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh will be pushed to the brink,” he warned.
Dhaliwal questioned how cotton farmers would survive if subsidised US cotton enters India, what would happen to apple growers in Himachal Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir if cheap American apples dominate the market, and how almond and walnut farmers in Kashmir would compete with US imports.
Unequal tariffs amount to economic surrender
Slamming the BJP government over tariffs, Dhaliwal said Indian exports earlier faced tariffs of around 2.8 percent, which were increased to 50 percent during the Trump era and still remain high at around 18 percent. In contrast, India has reportedly reduced tariffs on US products from nearly 60 percent to almost zero.
“This is not a trade deal. This is economic surrender,” Dhaliwal said.
‘Changed masters, not habits’: Dhaliwal targets Jakhar
Taking a sharp dig at Sunil Jakhar, Dhaliwal said, “When Congress was in power, Jakhar praised Indira Gandhi. Today, he praises Narendra Modi. But he never speaks for farmers or Punjabis. Speak for farmers, not for your political masters.”
Reiterating AAP’s stand, Dhaliwal said the deal goes against the interests of Indian farmers and the nation, warning that it could lead to widespread agricultural collapse, bankruptcy and farmer suicides.
“The US has found the world’s biggest market for its surplus farm produce. But where will our farmers go? BJP and Sunil Jakhar must answer—what benefit will Indian farmers get when American red sorghum, corn, cotton, apples and almonds flood our markets?” he asked.
Dhaliwal warned BJP leaders in Punjab against misleading the public and said the Aam Aadmi Party will continue to expose what it calls this “anti-farmer conspiracy” at every platform.
