Will India boycott US products, emphasise ‘swadeshi’? Will Coca-Cola, Pepsi, McDonald’s face…

Swadeshi Jagran Manch protests against US products

Will the US products and famous brands be on the receiving end of President Donald Trump’s decision to impose a 25% tariff on buying Russian oil? Will ultra-nationalist forces in the country soon come out with an appeal to boycott products like Pepsi, Coca-Cola, and McDonald’s and technology platforms like Meta, Facebook, Amazon, X, and Walmart? With US President Donald Trump announcing a 25% tariff plus a penalty of 25% for buying Russian oil and asking to halt the talks for the Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA), it is clear that the worst has arrived and New Delhi will have to bite the bullet, at least for now.

PM Modi urges to use ‘swadeshi’

After Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday made a “special appeal” for becoming self-reliant, the threat became clear. He told a gathering in Bengaluru that Indian technology companies made products for the world, but “now is the time for us to give more priority to India’s needs.” Earlier last week, while addressing a public meeting in his home constituency of Varanasi, he urged the people to buy “swadeshi” products and promote indigenous industries.

Swadeshi Jagran Manch appeals to boycott US brands

In a separate incident on Sunday, the Swadeshi Jagran Manch group, which is linked to Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party, took out small public rallies across the country, urging people to boycott the US brands. Ashwani Mahajan, the group’s co-convenor, told Reuters, “People are now looking at Indian products. It will take some time to fructify. This is a call for nationalism and patriotism.” 

SJM launches social media campaign

The ultranationalist outfit, known for opposing foreign products, has started circulating messages on WhatsApp. It has asked people to use Indian brands of bath soaps, toothpaste, and cold drinks over foreign ones. In one such campaign, the Swadeshi Jagran Manch has used a graphic titled “Boycott foreign food chains”, with logos of McDonald’s. Taking to LinkedIn, Ram Shastry, CEO of India’s DriveU, which provides a car driver on-call service, wrote, “India should have its own homegrown Twitter/Google/YouTube/WhatsApp/FB—like China has.”

Any appeal to boycott the US products and brands in India may have adverse consequences, as Meta’s WhatsApp has the biggest market here and Domino’s has more restaurants than any other brand in the country. Similarly, beverages like Pepsi and Coca-Cola dominate the market and people still queue up when a new Apple store opens or a Starbucks cafe announces discounts.