Ajit Karn
The findings are part of a larger investigation alleging that Trump and his family neglected to disclose more than 100 foreign gifts worth $291,000 from a variety of nations, including Saudi Arabia, China, Japan, Qatar, Uzbekistan, Bahrain, Austria, and Bangladesh, among others.
According to an investigation by Congressional Democrats of the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability, as President of the United States, Donald Trump neglected to report 17 gifts from India worth more than $47,000 to the State Department.
These gifts were given between 2018 and 2021 by then-President Ram Nath Kovind, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, external affairs minister S Jaishankar, Uttar Pradesh chief minister (CM) Yogi Adityanath, then-Gujarat CM Vijay Rupani, Telangana CM K Chandrashekhar Rao, and the embassy of India in the Philippines. India also gifted First Lady Melania Trump, Trump’s daughter Ivanka Trump, and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner. The majority of presents correspond to Ivanka Trump’s 2017 visit to Hyderabad and President Trump’s 2020 state visit to India.
The findings are part of a larger investigation alleging that Trump and his family neglected to disclose more than 100 foreign gifts worth $291,000 from countries including Saudi Arabia, China, Japan, Qatar, Uzbekistan, Bahrain, Austria, and Bangladesh. Friday saw the publication of an interim staff report titled “Saudi Swords, Indian Jewellery, and a Larger-than-Life Salvadoran Portrait of Donald Trump: The Trump Administration’s Failure to Disclose Major Foreign Gifts.”
The report states, “Failure to report and disclose gifts in accordance with these rules violates the Foreign Gifts and Decorations Act and may also violate the Emoluments Clause of the Constitution, which prohibits the President from receiving benefits from foreign entities while in office. In addition, the President is required by the Ethics in Government Act to disclose gifts over a certain threshold that he and his immediate family have received. The committee has also raised the possibility that foreign leaders will use gifts to gain Trump’s favour.
In a section on India, the report indicates that Modi gave Trump a “black marble table with mother-of-pearl and stone inlay” and “cufflinks by (designer Raghavendra) Rathore in presentation box” valued at $1,400 and $1,920, respectively. Modi also presented Melania Trump with a “Charm bracelet, by Raghavendra Rathore, in presentation box” valued at $2,750, a “Bandhgala jacket, by Raghavendra Rathore, in presentation box” valued at $950, a “Painting on silk, reportedly by the Pichwai Painting Deccan School of India, in frame and presentation box” valued at $2,200, and a “bracelet by Raghvendra Ra
President Kovind presented Trump with a “Indian silk rug” valued at $6,600 and a marble replica of the Taj Mahal valued at $4,600. While Adityanath presented Trump with a vase made of makrana marble valued at $8,500, Rupani presented Trump with two sets of footed dishes, a lion statue, a scarf, and a candelabrum worth a total of $7,610. Jaishankar presented a $1,250 photo folio of Trump and the First Lady’s state visit.
In 2018, the embassy of India in Philippines presented Ivanka Trump with a “rug, silk and wool, in carrying bag” valued at $4,600, whereas KCR presented her with a “sculpture of the Charminar, in silver filigree, in presentation case” valued at $2,400.
Certainly, the exchange of presents is a standard component of diplomatic interactions and a means of promoting local products. India has made a concerted effort to promote products made in India as gifts for foreign visitors. Each country has its own laws regarding the disclosure of gifts, with Indian dignitaries sending their gifts to Toshakhana. The PMO has been auctioning off presents received by Prime Minister Modi, with the proceeds going towards the Ganga cleanup mission.
In Pakistan, former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s sale of some of the gifts he received while in office, after purchasing them at a discount from the gift repository, has sparked a legal battle at the core of last week’s standoff between police and his supporters.
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The majority of Trump’s gifts mentioned in the Congressional report are now stored at the National Archives, but the law mandates the President and other federal officials to disclose all gifts worth more than $415. This is the provision the White House of Donald Trump is accused of violating.
