India has said remarks on a social media post that referred to Indians “are obviously uninformed, inappropriate and in poor taste”, hours after the US embassy issued a subsequent statement on the matter.
US President Donald Trump had shared a derogatory post by a podcaster on social media describing India as a “hell-hole”.
Without directly mentioning Trump, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) in a statement this evening said the comments “certainly do not reflect the reality of the India-US relationship, which has long been based on mutual respect and shared interests.”
“We have seen the comments, as also the subsequent statement issued by the US embassy in response. The remarks are obviously uninformed, inappropriate and in poor taste. They certainly do not reflect the reality of the India-US relationship, which has long been based on mutual respect and shared interests,” MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said.
Trump shared a purported four-page transcript of the podcaster, along with derogatory comments on Indians. Later, in a damage-control move, the US embassy released a statement that Trump believes India is a “great” country led by a “good friend of mine at the top”.
The US spokesperson’s statement came in response to queries from the Indian media about the controversy created by Trump reposting on social media comments by radio show host Michael Savage that referred to India, China and some other countries as “hell-holes”.
Trump’s post drew immediate criticism from the Hindu American Foundation, which said it was “deeply disturbed” by the content. “We are deeply disturbed by POTUS sharing this hateful, racist screed targeting Indian and Chinese Americans,” the group said in a statement.
It added that “endorsing such rants as the President of the US will further stoke hatred and endanger our communities, at a time when xenophobia and racism are already at an all-time high.”
The organisation urged Trump “to reconsider, delete this post and recognise the indelible contributions of Asian Americans to our great country.”
BJP leader Priyanka Chaturvedi also weighed in, referring to the remarks during a public appearance. “As I was making my way here to the Hudson Institute, there were some very scathing remarks coming from President Trump, and I happened to read it on Truth Social,” she said.