White House trade advisor Peter Navarro intensified his attacks on India, directing sharp criticism not only at Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government but also at India’s social structure. On Sunday, Navarro accused New Delhi of laundering Russian oil, profiteering through what he controversially described as “Brahmin elites,” and destabilising the international order through its ties with Moscow and Beijing. His remarks, seen as unusually personal and inflammatory, marked a new low in his ongoing campaign against India’s energy policies.
In an interview with Fox News, Navarro sought to justify the Trump administration’s recent decision to impose a sweeping 50 per cent tariff on Indian goods. He argued that India, which he labelled the “maharaja of tariffs,” has long maintained some of the highest protective duties in the world while simultaneously flooding the American market with exports. He linked this to the Ukraine conflict, alleging that India’s crude oil purchases from Russia were “bankrolling” Vladimir Putin’s war effort.
Navarro singled out Prime Minister Modi, questioning his alignment with Russian President Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping. “Modi is a great leader,” Navarro acknowledged, before sharply adding, “I don’t understand why he is getting into bed with Putin and Xi Jinping when India is the biggest democracy in the world.” He went further by making divisive remarks about India’s caste system, claiming that wealthy Brahmins were profiteering at the expense of ordinary citizens, an assertion widely criticised as an inappropriate and inflammatory cultural reference.
The top Trump aide has, in recent weeks, repeatedly accused India of undermining global stability through its energy and defence partnerships. In conversations with Bloomberg TV, Navarro branded India a “strategic freeloader,” alleging that New Delhi was purchasing advanced weapons from Russia while simultaneously lobbying American firms for sensitive technology transfers. His rhetoric escalated further when he described the Ukraine war as “Modi’s war,” contending that India’s oil trade was directly financing Russia’s military machine.
On social media, Navarro sharpened his line of attack by citing statistics on India’s oil trade. He claimed that India now exports more than one million barrels of refined petroleum daily—an amount greater than half of the Russian crude it imports. According to him, the proceeds from this trade enriched India’s politically connected energy giants and, by extension, flowed into Putin’s war chest. In another controversial move, he posted an image of Prime Minister Modi meditating in saffron robes, an apparent attempt to mock India’s cultural and civilisational heritage.
India, meanwhile, has responded firmly to these allegations. Government sources have accused Washington and its allies of hypocrisy, pointing out that both the United States and the European Union continue to purchase Russian energy despite publicly criticising New Delhi. “Europe still buys Russian gas and the US still imports Russian uranium,” an official source said, adding that India had acted responsibly within global frameworks and had helped prevent energy prices from spiralling out of control during the crisis.
Navarro’s remarks came at a sensitive diplomatic moment. Just as Washington rolled out its new 50 per cent tariff on Indian imports—a punitive measure explicitly tied to India’s Russian oil purchases—Prime Minister Modi was in China for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit. There, he held high-profile meetings with both Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping, marking his first official trip to China in seven years. The timing of Navarro’s tirade only added to the controversy, underlining the widening rift between Washington and New Delhi over the Ukraine conflict and global trade rules.
