India to Send Multi-Nation Delegations; US to Tax NRI Remittances

On 22 May, Indian External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar thanked Taliban-ruled Afghanistan’s Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi for support during the recent escalation of hostilities between India and Pakistan. It is ironic because India does not recognize the Taliban government. Since Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) came to power in India in 2014, India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi has done 88 foreign trips, visiting 73 countries. The narrative among BJP voters is that Modi is respected by all world leaders. Yet, no country—except Afghanistan—openly supported India in its recent engagement with Pakistan. To change the world’s perception, India is sending 59 leaders in seven delegations to 32 countries to explain India’s point of view and decry Pakistan’s support to terrorism in India. Many of the leaders are from the opposition parties. For example, Shashi Tharoor and Manish Tiwari from Indian National Congress (INC), Asaduddin Owaisi from All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen’s and Kanimozhi Karunanidhi from Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam. Each delegation includes one Sikh or Panjabi. Among those are INC’s Amar Singh, Member of Parliament from Fategarh Sahib, nominated Rajya Sabha (Upper House of Parliament) MP Satnam Singh Sandhu, Aam Aadmi Party’s Rajya Sabha MPs Ashok Kumar Mittal and Vikramjit Singh Sahney, veteran BJP leader Surinderjeet Singh Ahluwalia, and former diplomat Taranjit Singh Sandhu. On 15 May, an Indian technical team reached the United Nations to present evidence about Pakistan's involvement in the Pahalgam terror attack to the Monitoring Team of the 1267 Sanctions Committee that decides on the global listing of terrorist groups. Meanwhile, a new tax proposal by the US could significantly impact Non-Resident Indians (NRIs). The bill, introduced on 12 May includes a provision to impose a 5% tax on international money transfers made by non-citizens. India is the world’s top recipient of remittances, with around $83B sent annually from abroad. 28% of it is from the US. With the new tax, these remittances could see a decline (earlier coverage).