India should consider withdrawing from ‘exploitative’ WTO pacts, says RSS affiliate
In light of the United States imposing reciprocal tariffs, India should consider withdrawing from “exploitative” World Trade Organization agreements, the Swadeshi Jagran Manch, an organisation affiliated to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, was quoted as stating by PTI on Sunday.
The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh is the ideological parent of the Bharatiya Janata Party.
On April 2, the US announced that it was imposing “reciprocal” tariffs on dozens of countries, including a 26% “discounted” levy on India, which will take effect on Wednesday.
Washington also announced a 10% minimum tariff on most goods imported into the country, which took effect on Saturday. The US government imposed a 25% tariff on all foreign-made automobiles, which took effect on April 3.
On Sunday, Swadeshi Jagran Manch national co-convenor Ashwani Mahajan claimed that the Donald Trump administration imposing “unilateral” tariffs violated World Trade Organization rules.
“Now that we are witnessing a complete disregard for the WTO, it is time to think afresh about the agreements on TRIPS [Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights], TRIMS [Trade-Related Investment Measures], services and agriculture in the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade [GATT],” PTI quoted Mahajan as saying.
While TRIPS sets minimum standards for intellectual property protection to facilitate trade and innovation, TRIMS prohibits investment measures that restrict or distort trade. The two agreements are administered by the...
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