By TRH Political Desk
Geopolitics analyst Manish Anand says Swadeshi Jagran Manch’s boycott call signals rising friction between RSS and Modi government over US tariff pressure
New Delhi, August 14, 2026 — Swadeshi Jagran Manch, an economic affiliate of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), has issued a call to boycott American goods, in what geopolitics analyst Manish Anand describes as a sign of deepening unease within the RSS over the Modi government’s handling of relations with Washington.
Speaking on The Raisina Hills, Anand said the boycott call was triggered by a US Senate move threatening steep tariffs on Indian goods over India’s purchase of Russian oil — a measure whose enforcement rests with the US president. Anand noted that Swadeshi Jagran Manch is a vocal economic affiliate of the RSS, and that its intervention reflects broader anxiety inside the Sangh parivar.
“History Repeating Itself”
Anand drew a historical parallel, arguing that the current atmosphere of street-level protest resembles the final years of the Manmohan Singh-led UPA government in 2012–13, and even more closely mirrors friction between the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government and RSS affiliates in 2003–04, when Sangh-linked groups publicly criticized the government and blunted its “India Shining” narrative.
Three Flashpoints, According to Anand
Anand pointed to three developments he says have stoked RSS distrust of the Modi government’s US policy:
- The US tariff threat tied to India’s Russian oil purchases, which he said the Sangh sees as pressure the government should resist.
- The FCRA bill’s referral to a joint parliamentary committee, which Anand called unusual for a government that typically pushes legislation through without extended debate — reading it as a rare sign of the government yielding ground.
- A shelved proposal to tax UPI transactions, which Anand said was widely viewed within RSS circles as a concession to pressure from US-based payment networks such as Mastercard and Visa, which have lost ground to UPI’s growth.
Concerns Over the Pending US Trade Deal
Anand said the deeper worry within RSS circles is that a forthcoming India-US tariff agreement could open India’s agriculture market to heavily subsidized American farms, potentially undercutting Indian farmers, most of whom hold less than three acres of land. He argued this reflects a broader erosion of confidence in the Modi government’s foreign policy firmness toward Washington.
US Diplomatic Posture Cited as a Factor
Anand also pointed to the expanded remit of US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor, who he said has been given oversight of South Asia and Central Asia in addition to India — a move he characterized as diminishing India’s traditional regional standing. He cited Gor’s recent visit to Bangladesh and analysts’ observations that China and the US now rank ahead of India on Dhaka’s priority list.
Anand further referenced public remarks by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, made alongside External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar in New Delhi, regarding a $500 billion Indian commitment to purchase American goods over five years — a claim Anand noted India’s foreign ministry has not publicly disputed.
Anand concluded that the boycott call, alongside the government’s retreat on the FCRA bill and the UPI tax proposal, points to a broader “restlessness” within the RSS over what he described as a weak and yielding posture toward Washington — one he said even the Sangh’s own affiliates are no longer willing to stay silent about.
(Analysis based on remarks by Manish Anand, geopolitics analyst, on the YouTube program The Raisina Hills.)
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