‘What MAGA really cares about…’: Ishaan Tharoor jibe at Trump’s India voter ID pitch

American journalist Ishaan Tharoor on Tuesday pushed back against US President Donald Trump’s use of India’s voter identification system as an example for the US, saying that while it is easy to get a voter ID in India, what the MAGA movement actually cares about is how the government managed to remove millions of people from electoral rolls.

Tharoor was responding to a Truth Social post by the US President, in which Trump shared details of a conversation his administration had with chief election commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, who, according to Trump, asked how the US could have elections without requiring voter ID cards.

In his post, Trump mentioned that India’s last election had 646 million voters and that less than 1% voted by mail, adding that every single voter had to have a “VALID Photo Identity Document”. Trump also stressed the need for America to pass the Save America Act.

Also Read: SAVE Act explained: What is Trump’s US voter ID bill and how will it work?

“Earlier this month, India’s Chief Election Commissioner, Gyanesh Kumar, asked our Administration — How can you have Elections in the U.S. without a valid Photo ID? India’s last Election had 646,000,000 Voters! Less than 1% voted by mail, and every single Voter had to have a VALID Photo Identity Document. We need to pass THE SAVE AMERICA ACT, now! President DONALD J. TRUMP,” he wrote on Truth Social.

What Ishaan Tharoor said

Tharoor remarked that, despite India’s adversity and complexity, it is easier for the average Indian to obtain a photo ID than it is for many Americans in some states.

“India, with all its adversity and complexity, makes it easier for the average Indian to get a photo ID than it is for many Americans to do so in some states,” Tharoor said.

He added that the more significant precedent from India, particularly one that may appeal to the MAGA, was not its voter ID system but the government’s ability to remove large numbers of people from electoral rolls on bureaucratic grounds.

Also Read: Where is Melania Trump? First lady missing from public eye for a month

“The real precedent set in India that MAGA may care about is not about voter ID but how India's Hindu nationalist government managed to knock millions of people off the voting rolls in some states on arcane bureaucratic grounds.”

Gyanesh Kumar's meeting with Sergio Gor

Trump’s post comes one week after CEC Gyanesh Kumar met US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor, where the two agreed to work closely together to deepen collaboration on election management and the training of election staff.

Gor, in a post on X, wrote on Tuesday, “President Donald J. Trump is absolutely correct! 646 MILLION voters, every single one required an ID in India’s last election. Congress should pass THE SAVE AMERICA ACT!”

What is the SAVE America Act

The Save America Act will require voters to provide documentary proof of citizenship when registering to vote as well as a photo ID when voting.

However, the issue of voter ID requirement laws has long been contentious in the United States. Supporters argued that such laws will effectively ensure election integrity especially after heated political debate around the legitimacy of recent elections.