HYDERABAD: AIMIM president and Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi on Saturday held the Union government responsible for the impact of the United States’ decision to hike the fees on the H1B visa to USD 100,000, arguing that the move exposes shortcomings in India’s foreign policy.
In a series of posts on X, Owaisi said Indians were the primary beneficiaries of the H1B system, with residents of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh dominating the scheme. With an average annual salary of about $120,000. These earnings, Owaisi wrote, not only supported families in India but also contributed to the country’s USD 125 billion remittance inflows
Calling the closure of this route “a major source of intergenerational mobility”, Owaisi argued that while US President Donald Trump acted in his own interest, the Indian government failed to protect national interests. “My complaint is not against Trump, he did what he wanted. My quarrel is with this government: what did you achieve with Howdy Modi and Namaste Trump? All those NRIs that you gathered in Madison Square Garden, what did that achieve? Birthday wishes are not foreign policy successes,” he wrote.
Owaisi said the end of H1B visas for Indians suggested Washington did not value New Delhi as a strategic partner, calling it “a failure of this government”. Owaisi linked the issue to wider challenges in bilateral relations, citing US tariffs on Indian exports, the Pakistan-US trade agreement, and the Saudi-Pakistan pact, which he argued had Washington’s backing.
Owaisi suggested India strengthen trade settlement arrangements in rupees, noting that dedollarisation deals had already been signed with over 18 countries, including Qatar and members of ASEAN. He said such mechanisms should be expanded to all major trading partners to reduce vulnerability to US pressure.
Making it clear that he was not raising the issue for political advantage, Owaisi said the Union government must “introspect as to why India is facing such difficulties in foreign policy and national security. Is it because you have reduced these issues to gimmicks? After all, it’s not Modi who suffers, but common Indians.”
He concluded that India had lost ground in global affairs over the past decade.