Dr Rajesh Talwar killed Aarushi and Hemraj: CBI

US President Donald Trump's administration intends to press India to give online retailers such as Amazon and Walmart full access to its $125 billion e-commerce market, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday, citing industry executives, lobbyists and US government officials.

The US plans to push Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government for a level playing field on e-commerce in wide-ranging talks on a US-India trade agreement set to also cover sectors from food to cars, the newspaper reported.

It did not mention what measures the Trump administration expects from the Indian government.

Amazon and Walmart operate in India through local units but face restrictions on holding inventory and directly selling to consumers, unlike domestic firm Reliance, which can open physical stores and leverage its vast retail network to reach customers across the country.

Amazon and Walmart did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comment.

India and US are in the middle of chalking out a trade deal as part of New Delhi's efforts to avoid US tariffs.

US Vice President JD Vance also met with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday, as officials in New Delhi expect to clinch a trade deal with the U.S. within the 90-day pause on tariff hikes announced by Trump on April 9 for major trading partners.

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched a scathing attack on the Congress on Sunday, accusing the party of indulging in minority appeasement and vote-bank politics over its opposition to the amended Waqf Act. Speaking at the inauguration of Hisar Airport in Haryana, the Prime Minister also questioned the Congress’s commitment to the Muslim community, asking why the party had never appointed a Muslim president or reserved a significant portion of election tickets for Muslim candidates.

“Congress has appeased only a few fundamentalists while keeping the majority of Muslims poor and uneducated,” Modi said. “If the Congress truly cares for Muslims, let them make a Muslim the party president and reserve 50 per cent of their Lok Sabha tickets for Muslim candidates. But they won’t. Their only aim is to snatch away others’ rights for political gains.”

He alleged that the Congress misused the Waqf law to benefit select groups and land mafias. “Lakhs of hectares of land under Waqf have been misused. If it had been used honestly, Muslim youth wouldn’t be forced to fix bicycle punctures for a living,” Modi remarked. “With the new amendments, Waqf Boards can no longer claim land belonging to tribals or marginalized communities. This is true social justice.”

Modi linked the Waqf law controversy to what he called the Congress’s legacy of undermining Dr B.R. Ambedkar. Remembering Ambedkar on his birth anniversary, the Prime Minister accused the Congress of sidelining him during his lifetime and attempting to erase his legacy after his death.

“Babasaheb Ambedkar stood for equality, but Congress infected the nation with the virus of vote-bank politics. They made him lose elections twice and tried to keep him out of the system,” Modi said, adding that every policy of his government is inspired by Ambedkar’s ideals.

He also took aim at the Congress’s stance on the Uniform Civil Code, noting that while the Constitution recommends a common civil code, the Congress never implemented it. “Today, Uttarakhand has implemented a Uniform Civil Code, and Congress is opposing it. This shows their double standards,” he said.

In response, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge hit back, accusing the BJP of using Ambedkar’s name for political mileage while failing to implement his principles. “Dr Ambedkar emphasised education above all. What has this government done to realise his vision?” Kharge questioned. “They only speak against Congress, against Nehru, and all we have done. But what have they achieved themselves?”

Kharge also reiterated the Congress’s demand for immediate implementation of the Women’s Reservation Act, which mandates 33 per cent representation for women in Parliament and state assemblies. “When the bill was passed two years ago, we demanded SC, ST, and OBC women be included in the reservation. This remains our goal,” he said.

The exchange marks a sharp escalation in the war of words between the two national parties ahead of the upcoming general elections, with both sides invoking Ambedkar’s legacy to bolster their political narratives.

New Delhi: Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi has written to Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, urging the state government to enact a law named Rohith Vemula Act for ensuring that no one faces caste-based discrimination in the education system.

In his letter to the Karnataka CM, Gandhi highlighted the discrimination BR Ambedkar faced in his lifetime.

"Here he describes an incident during a long bullock cart journey: 'There was plenty of food with us. There was hunger burning within us; with all this we were to sleep without food; that was because we could get no water, and we could get no water because we were untouchables'.

"He tells us about his experience in school: 'I knew I was an untouchable, and that untouchables were subjected to certain indignities and discriminations. For instance, I knew that in the school I could not sit in the midst of my classmates according to my rank, but I was to sit in a corner by myself'," Gandhi said quoting Ambedkar.

The Congress leader said Siddaramaiah would agree that what Ambedkar faced was shameful and should not be endured by any child in India.

"It is a shame that even today millions of students from Dalit, Adivasi and OBC communities have to face such brutal discrimination in our educational system," Gandhi said.

"The murder of bright young people like Rohith Vemula, Payal Tadvi and Darshan Solanki is simply not acceptable. It is time to put a firm end to this. I urge the Karnataka government to enact the Rohith Vemula Act so that no child of India has to face what Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, Rohit Vemula and millions of others have had to endure," Gandhi said in his letter to the Karnataka chief minister dated April 16.

Rohith Vemula, a Dalit student, died by suicide due to caste-based discrimination, in 2016.

Sharing the letter on X, Gandhi said, "Recently, I met students and teachers from Dalit, Adivasi and OBC communities in Parliament. During the conversation, they told me how they have to face caste-based discrimination in colleges and universities." Ambedkar had shown that education is the only means by which even the deprived can become empowered and break the caste system, Gandhi said.

But it is very unfortunate that even after decades, lakhs of students are facing caste discrimination in our education system, he said.

"This discrimination has taken the lives of promising students like Rohith Vemula, Payal Tadvi and Darshan Solanki. Such horrific incidents cannot be tolerated at any cost. Now is the time to put a complete stop to this injustice," he said.

"I have written a letter to Siddaramaiah ji and requested that the Rohith Vemula Act be implemented in Karnataka. No child in India should face the casteism that Babasaheb Ambedkar, Rohith Vemula and crores of people have suffered," he said.