“Time For Decisive Battle Against Terror And Its Backers,” Says Modi In Houston

After meeting heads of energy companies in Houston, Modi said that Friday’s decision to cut corporate tax rates would make India more competitive in the global economy. The CEOs told him that the move has sent a positive message to business leaders not just in India, but around the world, Modi said.

On the changes made to Article 370 of the Constitution, Prime Minister Modi made an apparent reference to Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan and his handling of domestic issues in Pakistan. “Those troubled by the move on are unable to handle running their own country,” Modi said. U.S. President Trump is scheduled to meet Prime Minister Khan on Monday.

After pointing out that the perpetrators of the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attack as well as the Nov. 26, 2008 Mumbai seige were found in Pakistan, Modi declared that “it is time for a decisive battle against terrorism and its backers.”

India’s diverse languages are indicative of its liberal democratic society, the Prime Minister said, pointing out that hundreds of languages and tongues have co-existed and progressed in India for very long. In diversity rests India’s unity and its strengths, Modi said in his address to Indian-Americans in Houston.

The Prime Minister’s comments come days after Home Minister Amit Shah’s remarks that India needs one unifying language, and that Hindi was best-suited to do so, sparked a controversy in non-Hindi speaking parts of the country. Shah later clarified that he was not proposing the imposition of Hindi over regional languages.

American crude oil exports to India have risen 400 percent in the last year, says U.S. President Donald Trump, adding that energy security is the linchpin of relations between the two countries. Trump said that he looks forward to concluding more defence deals with India soon, pegging military sales made to India over the last decade at $18 billion.

Welcoming U.S. President Donald Trump to the ‘Howdy Modi’ event in Houston, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he admired the American president’s sense of leadership and that Trump has already “made the U.S. economy strong again.”

President Trump is expected to deliver a major, 30-minute speech on India and Indian Americans at the event, PTI reported. U.S. officials said the President’s speech would bring fresh energy in the long-lasting relationship between the two democracies.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and U.S. President Donald Trump will be received by an audience of 50,000 for the ‘Howdy, Modi! community event at the NRG Football Stadium in Houston, Texas. Five years after his first outreach to the Indian diaspora in the United States, Prime Minister Modi will speak to Indian-Americans in a state that accounts for 10 percent of India-U.S. trade. About $7 billion worth of U.S. goods and commodities are moved between Texas and India. Some of the largest companies are setting up their headquarters all over Texas, creating jobs and opportunities for Americans and Indian Americans.