Following the recent decision of the Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to cancel the $21 million fund to the Election Commission of India, US President Donald Trump said that India with its rapidly growing economy and high taxation rates, doesn’t require such financial support. DOGE’s move on February 16, 2025, was part of a broader set of cancellations of US taxpayer-funded initiatives across the world.
ANI quoted President Trump, while signing executive orders at Mar-a-Lago on Tuesday as saying, “Why are we giving USD 21 million to India? They have a lot more money. They are one of the highest taxing countries in the world in terms of us; we can hardly get in there because their tariffs are so high. I have a lot of respect for India and their Prime Minister, but giving USD 21 million for voter turnout?”. He questioned the idea of funding the ‘voter turnout’ initiatives in the country while emphasizing his respect for India and its Prime Minister.
BJP’s Amit Malviya Reacts To The Decision
In a social media post last Saturday, DOGE announced, “US taxpayer dollars were going to be spent on the following items, all which have been cancelled” In response to the decision, Bhartiya Janta Party’s Amit Malviya wrote on X, “$21M for voter turnout? This definitely is external interference in India’s electoral process. Who gains from this? Not the ruling party for sure!”
The US Department’s list also included various other funding cuts such as $10M for Mozambique voluntary medical male circumcision, $9.7M for UC Berkeley to develop a cohort of Cambodian youth with enterprise-driven skills, $2.3M for strengthening independent voices in Cambodia, $32M to the Prague Civil Society Centre, $40M for gender equality and women empowerment hub, $14M for improving public procurement in Serbia, etc.
– $486M to the “Consortium for Elections and Political Process Strengthening,” including $22M for "inclusive and participatory political process" in Moldova and $21M for voter turnout in India.
$21M for voter turnout? This definitely is external interference in India’s electoral… https://t.co/DsTJhh9J2J
— Amit Malviya (@amitmalviya) February 15, 2025
