USAID Funding Slashed: Elon Musk-Led DOGE Cuts $21 Million for India’s Voter Turnout Program

The Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has announced a major reduction in U.S. foreign aid, slashing $723 million in funding, including $21 million allocated for increasing voter turnout in India. The move has sparked controversy, with prominent Indian economist and Prime Minister’s Economic Advisory Council member Sanjeev Sanyal labeling USAID as the “biggest scam in human history.”

DOGE’s Budget Cuts Target Global Political Initiatives

DOGE, an agency established under the Donald Trump administration to oversee government spending, announced the cuts on Sunday as part of a broader budget overhaul. Among the affected programs was a $29 million initiative aimed at strengthening Bangladesh’s political landscape and a $29 million project to improve fiscal federalism in Nepal.

Sanyal took to social media platform X (formerly Twitter) to question where the USAID funding was being directed, stating:

“Would love to find out who received the US$21M spent to improve ‘voter turnout in India’ and the US$29M to ‘strengthen the political landscape in Bangladesh’; not to mention the US$29M spent to improve ‘fiscal federalism’ in Nepal. USAID is the biggest scam in human history.”

 

Trump and Musk’s Push to Shut Down USAID

Since returning to office, President Donald Trump has reinstated his administration’s aggressive stance against foreign aid, ordering a near-total freeze on U.S. assistance programs. Elon Musk, in his role leading DOGE, has also expressed support for shutting down USAID entirely, arguing that American taxpayers should not be funding international political and economic initiatives.

Indian Officials and BJP React

Former Chief Election Commissioner of India SY Quraishi dismissed claims that the U.S. government was funding voter turnout efforts in India, stating that no such Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) existed from his tenure in 2012.

Meanwhile, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) raised concerns about foreign influence in India’s electoral process. BJP IT Cell chief Amit Malviya questioned:

“$486M to the ‘Consortium for Elections and Political Process Strengthening,’ including $22M for an ‘inclusive and participatory political process’ in Moldova and $21M for voter turnout in India. Who gains from this? Not the ruling party for sure.”

With Musk and DOGE pushing for broader cuts and USAID facing increasing scrutiny, the future of U.S. foreign aid remains uncertain. India’s government has yet to issue an official response, but the debate over external influence in elections is expected to continue in the lead-up to future political campaigns.

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