New Delhi: The US embassy in New Delhi has denied claims that America provided $21 million in funding for voter turnout-related activities in India, directly contradicting statements made earlier this year by US President Donald Trump.
In a formal communication to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), the embassy clarified that the US Agency for International Development (USAID) “did not receive or provide funding of $21 million for voter turnout in India from Financial Year 2014 to 2024 nor implement any voter turnout-related activities”.
The MEA informed the Parliament about this in a written response to a question asked by Rajya Sabha MP John Brittas. The Centre revealed that the US had conducted a global review of its foreign aid programmes in February this year.
“On 2 July 2025, the US Embassy shared data that it said covered USAID funding in India from 2014 to 2024, including details of implementing partners, objectives, and key accomplishments of each activity undertaken. The embassy also maintains that ‘USAID/India did not receive or provide funding of $21 million for voter turnout in India from fiscal years 2014 to 2024, nor has it implemented any voter turnout-related activities in India’,” the MEA response said.
The embassy’s denial comes amid a broader shutdown of USAID operations worldwide. On 11 August, the US embassy informed India’s Department of Economic Affairs that all seven partnership agreements between USAID and Government of India would be formally closed effective 15 August. It also shared a detailed, beneficiary-wise breakdown of USAID allocations for the years 2022, 2023, and 2024.
The statement was issued in response to Trump’s public assertion that USAID funds, originally issued for humanitarian purposes, were “misused” by the Indian government to boost voter turnout.
The claim followed a February 2025 announcement by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), then headed by Elon Musk, which listed the $21 million as part of a broader $723 million in cancelled foreign aid, allegedly allocated for voter turnout efforts in India.
On 16 February, DOGE posted on X that it had cancelled $486 million in worldwide USAID funding for the Consortium for Elections and Political Process Strengthening (CEPPS), including a supposed $21 million set aside for India.
USAID ceased most of its operations globally on 1 July, terminating approximately 83 percent of its programmes and laying off 94 percent of its staff.
The US State Department has assumed control of the remaining 17 percent of foreign aid initiatives. The full closure of USAID is scheduled to be completed by 2 September.
(Edited by Shashank Kishan)
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