In a blistering Rajya Sabha speech, Shashi Tharoor accused the government of turning a “free trade” pact with the US into a pre‑committed shopping list that overturned reciprocity. He warned that promising 500 billion dollars of purchases risked flipping India’s trade surplus into a long‑term deficit, even as Washington kept tariffs and leverage. From ignored Cabinet cautions to unanswered questions on farmers, MSMEs and the budget, Tharoor painted the deal as surrender, not strategy.