Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday accused the government of sidelining the voices of workers and farmers while taking decisions that affect their future, questioning whether Prime Minister Narendra Modi would now heed their concerns or if there is a “grip” on him that is too strong.

His remarks came a day after he described the India–US interim trade deal as a “wholesale surrender”, alleging that India’s energy security had been handed over to the United States and farmers’ interests compromised.

In a post on X in Hindi, Rahul said, “Today, lakhs of workers and farmers across the country are on the streets to raise their voices for their rights.” He added that workers fear the four labour codes would weaken their rights.

“Farmers fear that the trade agreement (with the US) will harm their livelihoods. And weakening or eliminating MNREGA could take away the last source of support for villages,” the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha said.

“Will Modiji listen now? Or is there a ‘grip’ on him that is too strong? I stand firmly with the issues and struggles of workers and farmers,” Rahul said.

Earlier, during the debate on the Union Budget in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday, Rahul launched a sharp attack on the Modi government, claiming that Indian interests had been “surrendered” under the trade deal to safeguard the BJP’s financial architecture.

Criticising the Indo-US agreement, he likened it to a sequence in martial arts, saying that after securing a grip, the next step is a chokehold, followed by the opponent tapping out in defeat.

Rahul also stressed the need to protect the country’s people, data, food supply and energy system.

He said that if an INDIA bloc government had negotiated the trade agreement with the US, it would have told President Donald Trump that India must be treated equally.