India’s Ministry of External Affairs has said comments by US radio host Michael Savage, popularized by President Trump, are “ignorant”.
Published April 24, 2026
Comments from US President Donald Trump, who calls India “hell”, are as follows: Indian officials called it “in poor taste” and incompatible with bilateral relations.
Trump himself did not make the remark, but reposted it without comment on his Truth Social account on Thursday. The statement was made by conservative radio host Michael Savage.
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“Babies here get citizenship right away, and then they bring in their whole families from China or India or some other hellish place on earth,” Savage said, criticizing America’s birthright citizenship, which President Trump is trying to limit.
Indian Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal reacted late Thursday, calling the remarks “patently ignorant, inappropriate and in bad taste.”
The comments “certainly do not reflect the reality of India-US relations, which have long been based on mutual respect and common interests,” Jaiswal added.
“The president said, “India is a great country with a very good friend of mine at the top,” the US Embassy in New Delhi said.
China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not immediately comment on the matter.
“Hurts all Indians”
India’s main opposition Congress party criticized the “hellish” remarks, calling them “extremely insulting and anti-India. It hurts all Indians.”
“Prime Minister Narendra Modi should take up this issue with the President of the United States and express his strong opposition,” the party said in X.
Approximately 5.5 million people of Indian descent live in the United States, according to Indian government data. Indian Americans and Chinese Americans are the largest group of Asian Americans in the United States.
Savage’s comments, which were shared by President Trump, continued: “The immigrant class coming in today has little loyalty to this country, but that wasn’t always the case. No, they’re not like today’s European Americans or their ancestors.”
President Trump and Prime Minister Modi had a warm relationship during Trump’s first term, but relations cooled after India was hit with some of the highest US tariffs last year, many of which were withdrawn this year.
India and the United States are currently working on a trade deal to prevent another hike in tariffs and boost mutual sales.
President Trump has repeatedly used derogatory language toward foreign countries and immigrant communities, including recently calling Somali immigrants “trash.”
In 2018, President Trump made global headlines when he called El Salvador, Haiti, and other African countries “the worst countries.”
