Indo-US Trade Deal a ‘Total Surrender’, Piyush Goyal Should Resign: SKM

New Delhi: Hitting out at the Narendra Modi government for its “total surrender” to the US in the trade deal, the Samyukta Kisan Morcha, a farmers’ collective has demanded the immediate resignation of Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal.

As per the framework officially released on Saturday, “India 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.” 

In a press statement, SKM said this “is an abject rejection of the claim of the Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal that the agriculture and dairy sectors are out of the Free Trade Agreements and the Government of India will not make any compromise on the interests of agriculture. Dairy products are part of the FTAs signed with UK, New Zealand and EU and the fresh revelations have undoubtedly proved the Commerce Minister is consciously propagating falsehood and betraying the farmers and the entire people. SKM considers the role of Commerce Minister as a traitor and demands his immediate resignation.”

It also cautioned the Prime Minister to desist from signing the India-US Free Trade Agreement else he would have to face massive pan-India united mass struggles. 

SKM also called upon farmers across India to join protest demonstrations on February 12 and make the General Strike called by central trade unions, backed by the farmers’ collective, to give a befitting reply to the “anti-people” Modi government. 

Read the full SKM statement below:

 *Framework for Interim Trade Agreement with USA- A total Surrender by RSS-BJP led Govt. SKM Demands immediate resignation of Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal* 

 *Strongly demands Prime Minister Modi desist from signing the US Trade Deal or face Massive, Pan-India, United Struggles* 

 *Appeal to all Political parties and mass and class movements to rally to prevent the Government’s sell out of Indian farmers and agriculture to MNC’s*   

The Framework for Interim Agreement on USA-India Trade outlining key terms highlights total surrender before US Agriculture MNC giants by RSS-BJP led Narendra Modi government which has already welcomed this framework. As per the framework released by the Press Information Bureau of Government of India, “India 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 Framework is an abject rejection of the claim of the Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal that the agriculture and dairy sectors are out of the Free Trade Agreements and the Government of India will not make any compromise on the interests of agriculture. Dairy products are part of the FTAs signed with UK, New Zealand and EU and the fresh revelations have undoubtedly proved the Commerce Minister is consciously propagating falsehood and betraying the farmers and the entire people. SKM considers the role of Commerce Minister as a traitor and demands his immediate resignation.  Also SKM demands the Prime Minister to desist from signing the India-US Free Trade Agreement or face massive pan-India united mass struggles. 

18 % US tariff and Zero % tariff by India is NOT FREE TRADE. Tariff on Indian goods has actually risen from zero to 3% in 2023-24 to 18 per cent, while our tariff rates on US agri. products that stood at 30 to 150% are now down to zero. This will make Indian agriculture hang by the noose of US MNCs. As per the Framework for Interim Agreement, non-tariff barriers are to be reduced and that will help import of milk from the USA. RSS had been claiming no import of milk of animals fed with meat. That was a non-tariff barrier. Now RSS has been made to eat its own claim by Master Donald Trump and they have cowed down completely.

As per the PIB press note maize will be sold as Dried Distilled Grain, DDB along with Sorghum as animal feed. Control of the animal feed market will be completely monopolized by US companies. USA is already exporting crops such as maize, soya bean, cotton to India and US wheat is being exported at Rs 18.50 per kg and that will kill Indian farmers if it is allowed to flood the Indian markets.  There will be freedom to import GM foods and GM seeds that will ruin our natural fertility apart from damaging our cereal, pulses and oilseeds markets. Soya oil is on target for import. Ethanol too will be imported freely. Import of fresh fruits such as Apple, Pineapple, Coco, dry fruits including Cashew will ruin the farmers of Jammu Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh and other North Eastern states.

Indian industry, agriculture and dairy sectors are now under grave threat of cheap imports that will be dumped into Indian Markets. The Union Budget presented on February 1 has already exposed that declining agricultural growth (3.1%) & employment generation and that the Govt. has no proposals/ suggestions to solve the lack of growth. MSP is continuously below even the A2 costs, market prices are below MSP rates, cost of urea and DAP are being raised, peasant debt is rising.  Social expenditure has been cut across the board. RSS-BJP Govt.’s full scale attack against urban workers and rural labourers through 4LC and VB-GRAMG was already in the service of corporate houses and MNCs. The Union Budget 2026-27 has removed customs duty in vast sectors that will ruin the MSME and Indian Industry with immediate impact as well as in the long term. 

US officials, Agriculture Secretary Rollins has claimed that India is the largest agriculture market and its opening up for the USA will bring income to rural USA. RSS is pushing the country with the largest number of poor and destitute population into more inhuman existence to help profits of their favourite Foreign Masters. The Modi Govt. is forcing heavily subsidized agricultural products and dairy products on Indian markets. Indian agriculture already suffers from a negative government subsidy. 172 million rural households and 86% farmers being small and marginal are under heavy threat of an imperialist onslaught on their livelihood, being promoted by the Govt. of India. 

SKM strongly denounce the representatives of federations of the crony-corporate houses competing to hail the Modi Government and the anti-national India US Trade Deal, being least bothered about the interests of the farmers, labourers and the entire working people sacrificing life to build modern India and motivated only with crass profiteering upon exploiting the vast labour and resources of the country.

SKM appeals to all the political parties, kisan and agricultural workers organisations, trade unions and all the mass and class organisations representing the people to respond to the most anti-national trade agreements in the history of India with total disrespect to the Indian Parliament and democracy and rally to prevent the Government’s sell out of Indian farmers and agriculture to MNC’s . SKM calls upon farmers across India to join protest demonstrations on 12th February 2026 and make the General Strike as a befitting reply to the anti-people Modi Government.