Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Saturday took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, calling him "Mauni Baba" after US President Donald Trump reiterated claims that India had agreed to stop purchasing oil from Russia.
"President Trump has yet again said that he has been assured by his good friend that India will cut back on its imports of oil from Russia. But that good friend suddenly becomes a Mauni Baba whenever President Trump says he stopped Operation Sindoor and now when he says that India will reduce its imports of oil from Russia," Ramesh posted on X.
"Meanwhile, India's trade deficit with China during April–September 2025 increased to $54.4 billion, as compared to $49.6 billion in the same period last year," he added.
A day after India responded to the claims made by the US President about PM Modi's assurance to halt Russian oil purchases, Trump on Friday (local time) reiterated his assertion while claiming that New Delhi had already "de-escalated and more or less stopped" its purchases from Moscow.
While addressing a bilateral lunch with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the White House, the US President again claimed that India had significantly reduced its oil imports from Russia and was now pulling back entirely, stating that New Delhi "will not be buying oil from Russia anymore."
"India is not going to be buying Russian oil anymore, and Hungary is sort of stuck because they have one pipeline that's been there for years, and they're inland; they don't have sea, and I spoke with their leader... but India will not be buying oil from Russia," Trump said.
"They already de-escalated and more or less stopped. They are pulling back. They bought about 38 per cent of the oil, and they wouldn't be doing it anymore," he added.
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Trump's remarks came in reference to the ongoing geopolitical pressure on countries to reduce their energy ties with Russia in the wake of the conflict in Ukraine, which the West claims is fuelling Moscow's military operation in the region.
Earlier, India responded to comments made by Trump about PM Modi assuring him to halt Russian oil purchases, stating that the country's energy sourcing is guided by its national interests and the need to protect Indian consumers.
In its response, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said, "India is a significant importer of oil and gas. It has been our consistent priority to safeguard the interests of the Indian consumer in a volatile energy scenario. Our import policies are guided entirely by this objective. Ensuring stable energy prices and secure supplies have been the twin goals of our energy policy. This includes broad-basing our energy sourcing and diversifying as appropriate to meet market conditions."
"Where the US is concerned, we have for many years sought to expand our energy procurement. This has steadily progressed in the last decade. The current Administration has shown interest in deepening energy cooperation with India. Discussions are ongoing," he added.
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