Prominent yoga guru and co-founder of Patanjali, Baba Ramdev, strongly criticised US President Donald Trump on Sunday (Mar 9), stating that the Republican leader was promoting “tariff terrorism”. 

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He also accused Trump of bullying poor and developing nations through his push for reciprocal tariffs, which he said was unleashing a new “era of intellectual colonisation”.

"There is a new era of intellectual colonisation. Amid this, ever since Donald Trump rose to power, he created a new world record of 'tariff terrorism'. He has ripped off democracy by threatening poor and developing nations... This is 'economic terrorism'," Ramdev said.

"He is taking the world to a different era... In such a case, India needs to develop... All Indians should unite to build a strong nation and answer all these destructive powers," he added.

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Ramdev also emphasised that India must accelerate its development in these turbulent times, as certain powerful nations want to push the world towards chaos and destruction.

Also read: 'Did this out of respect for Sheinbaum'; Trump suspends most Mexico tariffs until April 2

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‘Trump has made tariffs household name’: Congress leader Jairam Ramesh

Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh also said that Trump has made tariffs a household name across the world.

“Till the mid-1910s tariffs were the main source of revenue for the US government. In 1913, the US Constitution was amended to introduce a federal income tax for the first time,” Ramesh said in a post on X.

“One of the most influential economists who championed and campaigned for the federal income tax was Edwin Seligman, a Professor of Public Finance at Columbia University,” he added.

Trump claims India agreed to reduce tariffs on US imports 

Donald Trump recently claimed that India has agreed to significantly reduce tariffs on US goods after he slammed India for having high duties.

Following this, Ramesh questioned PM Modi as to what the Indian government had agreed to amidst Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal's visit to Washington.

"The Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal is in Washington DC to talk trade with the Americans. Meanwhile, President Trump says this. What has the Modi Government agreed to? Are the interests of Indian farmers and of Indian manufacturing being compromised? The PM must take Parliament into confidence when it resumes on March 10th," Ramesh wrote in a post on X.

"'You tariff, I tariff', that is not the way international trade functions. These rules have been negotiated. The WTO is World Trade Organisation not World Trump Organisation," he said.

(With inputs from agencies)