EC owes clarification on USAID’s ‘voter turnout’ fund for India: J&K CM

Jammu, Feb 20 (PTI) Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Thursday said the Election Commission should clarify its stand on reports that the US spent USD 21 million for “voter turnout in India”.

Talking to reporters on the sidelines of a function here, he vehemently opposed foreign interference in the country’s democratic exercise.

“It (foreign interference) should not happen. So far, there is no proof of foreign interference… the Election Commission has to clarify whether foreign interference had taken place in our elections because to date we are of the belief that our elections were conducted in a free and fair manner,” Abdullah said.

He was responding to a query about US President Donald Trump’s questioning the need to spend money on voter turnout in India. Trump also speculated that the previous Biden administration was attempting to “get somebody else elected” in the country.

“It is up to America and it is their aid whom they want to give or not. Where is that decision ours?” the chief minister said.

The US Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) led by billionaire Elon Musk recently announced a series of expenditure cuts, including USD 21 million allocated for “voter turnout in India.”