The United States-India relationship has been in decline ever since the Modi government refused to nominate President Donald Trump for the coveted Nobel Peace Prize and rebuffed his claims of mediating a ceasefire between New Delhi and Islamabad, unlike Washington funded jihadi-shrill, Pakistan.

The characterisation of the Russia-Ukraine conflict as “Modi’s war,” allegations of India financing the bloody conflict and the imposition of additional 25% tariffs (50% in total) on India for purchasing Russian oil while brazenly defending Beijing’s acquisition of the same, have not only damaged present relations but also undermined the diplomatic efforts established between the two nations over the past several decades.

India’s assertiveness and sovereignty have definitely wounded Trump’s fragile ego, however, Prime Minister Narendra Modi appears disinclined to acquiesce to his bullying tactics. Furthermore, while the Republican leader engages in childish outbursts and severely jeopardizes the relationship with the world’s largest democracy, it important to note that he has already allowed anti-Indian elements to join his administration.

Pro-Khalistan advocate Harmeet Dhillon and half-Pakistani Omeed Malik are two such individuals who belong to the inner circle of the US president.

Who is Omeed Malik

46-year old Omeed Malik was born to Iranian and Pakistani immigrants. He was raised in New Jersey. His parents held Democratic political fundraisers, reported The Free Press. He was also a staunch supporter and voted twice for former president Barack Hussein Obama, donated to Hillary Clinton as well as served in Congress for two New Jersey Democrats.

Nevertheless, Malik grew disillusioned with the party following movements such as “Black Lives Matter,” “Me Too” and other liberal policies, ultimately deciding to switch sides. He is now in the epicentre of the MAGA (Make America Great Again) where power, money and politics collide during Trump’s second term in ways that frequently spark controversy within and outside of the establishment.

His friendship with Donald Trump Junior has reportedly made him associated with the messy financial affairs of the Trump family. The pair met in the summer of 2019 at a Hamptons party and started meeting regularly. He had known Kimberly Guilfoyle, Trump Junior’s then girlfriend for 10 years.

Trump Junior asked Malik to attend a 2020 presidential campaign fundraiser that summer. Afterward, he made his first donation of $5,600 to Trump only a month after giving $2,800 to Joe Biden. The current president’s eldest son is also a partner at Malik’s “1789 Capital” which was the biggest investor in journalist Tucker Carlson’s company. Carlson and Malik became friends in 2015 during their time at Bank of America.

The ex-Fox host, infamous for his anti-Israel rhetoric, has made no secret of his prejudice against India and praised the British Empire as beneficial to the subcontinent. “Strong countries dominate weak countries. This trend hasn’t changed. When the British pulled out of India, they left behind an entire civilisation, a language, a legal system, schools, churches and public buildings, all of which are still in use today,” he argued in 2022, resulting in a backlash.

Malik has been the target of multiple charges due to his firm’s ownership in Tucker Carlson Network (TCN). Laura Loomer painted him as the mastermind behind Carlson’s criticism of Israel and the introduction of guests with divisive opinions. A man who alleged that Adolf Hitler was in heaven was interviewed by Carlson last year.

The same person later returned for another program about sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein and was described as “the best and most honest popular historian in the United States,” by Carlson. Moreover, MAGA became embroiled in a contentious discussion concerning the Israel-Iran issue when he interviewed the Iranian president in July.

Malik’s name had surfaced once more, including in an X post referring to him as the network’s “key backer.” 1789 Capital is no longer involved as an investor in Carlson’s company which completed the buyout of all its investors in March.

Omeed Malik’s profound ties with Trump administration

Malik was a part of the Council on Foreign Relations, a gathering place for Washington and Wall Street insiders. He contributed money to the Milken Institute, a prominent think tank. Additionally, he was on the board of Network 20/20, a foreign policy nonprofit that has hosted yearly galas honouring liberal figures including the notorious George Soros.

Malik quit Bank of America in 2018 to launch his own financial advising business. According to media reports, the corporation accused him of personal conduct that went beyond corporate standards and he was sacked after being charge with inappropriate behaviour. He adamantly disputed any wrongdoing and sued Bank of America for over $100 million. Later the two sides came to an eight-figure settlement and Malik used the amount to launch Farvahar Partners, his investing company.

Malik landed in Florida in 2021 and quickly rooted himself in the Republican political landscape there. He also joined the conservative donor organisation Rockbridge Network which was founded by JD Vance and Chris Buskirk, a co-founder of 1789 Capital and publisher of the right-wing website American Greatness.

Malik founded “1789 Capital” in 2023 alongside Buskirk and Republican megadonor Rebekah Mercer whose family financed anti-India Breitbart News. The first investment made by his company was in Carlson’s network.

Malik has become one of most well-known entrepreneurs in the Trump world. He spends a lot of time at Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida where he sends cheques to Republican candidates and charities totalling tens of thousands of dollars at a time. A little over ten years before Scott Bessent was appointed treasury secretary for Trump, he met him and assisted him in launching his first hedge fund in 2015.

Bessent recently reiterated Rahul Gandhi’s Adani-Ambani jibe, asserting that the “wealthiest Indian families” are profiting from Russian oil.

Malik is profoundly engaged with the present administration and collaborates on numerous projects with Trump Junior, including the establishment of a “parallel economy” to bolster anti-Democratic enterprises as well as a club alongside investments in various conservative initiatives including those bigoted sentiments towards India, Hindus and Modi government.

Meet pro-Khalistani separatist Harmeet Dhillon

Donald Trump appointed Indian-American Harmeet Kaur Dhillon as the Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights in the US Department of Justice following his re-election to the office. She has a legal practice called “The Dhillon Law Group” which has offices throughout the country. However, her inclusion in the Trump administration caused her to leave the company in 2025.

Her controversial past and open support for the separatist Khalistan movement rapidly drew scrutiny and objections regarding her position in the administration.

Dhillon has been repeatedly charged with supporting Khalistanis based in the United States and having sympathy for their nefarious agenda. She has been a vocal supporter of the anti-India bandwagon, accusing New Delhi of running “death squads” to the US as well as Canada and implying that the Indian diaspora “participated” in the killing of critics.

India’s American death squad indictment. America’s Sikhs want answers: who else at risk, & what is US government doing about assassination attempts on US citizens? Indian-American Dems in Congress strangely silent. @RoKhanna? @RepBera?@ShriThanedar @CongressmanRaja? @RepJayapal? https://t.co/LdWjV34kOl

— Harmeet K. Dhillon (@HarmeetKDhillon) November 29, 2023

Dhillon alleged that Modi government was behind the assassination of Khalistani elements and claimed the Indian American democrats were “strangely silent.” She even asked about the measures taken by the United States government to ensure the safety of the country’s citizens.

Also assassinating India’s critics in the diaspora. Full service! https://t.co/WDyk7MuL2W

— Harmeet K. Dhillon (@HarmeetKDhillon) March 29, 2024

Dhillon even cited Pierre Poilievre, the leader of the opposition in Canada who backed Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s outrageous allegations against India for the “extrajudicial murder of Sikh leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar.” She termed him as a “Sikh leader” rather than a “Khalistani leader” to capitalise on the religious convictions of the Sikh diaspora in the US while also underplaying the radical ideology he promoted.

Canada’s conservative leader joins other Canadian officials in condemning the extrajudicial murder of Sikh leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar. Good to see them unite against this shocking act. https://t.co/vObNOuzl8o

— Harmeet K. Dhillon (@HarmeetKDhillon) September 19, 2023

Dhillon even mentioned a Reuters article about purported violations of human rights in India and commented that Punjab’s residents suffered as a result of the recent internet outage. She further stressed that Sikh activists and journalists had been singled out. She was alluding to the internet shutdown in Punjab which was implemented as part of a crackdown on Khalistani preacher and MP Amritpal Singh to prevent the transmission of false information.

Dhillon was previously a supporter of Democratic leader Kamala Harris. According to reports, she made political contributions during the latter’s campaign for district attorney of San Francisco. However, she was seen using caste rhetoric to criticize the former vice president during her appearance on Carlson’s show after the dramatic change in her political allegiances.

Addressing the pronunciation of her name by Harris, Dhillon indicated that she stresses the second syllable, thus making it Kamala whereas Camala is how it is called in India. “She comes from a high-caste Brahmin family. Her mother is a Brahmin,” Dhillon pointed out to which a scornful Carlson responded, “I thought she was oppressed.” She then retorted that Harris is a shape-shifter.

Harmeet K Dhillon brought up Kamala Harris’s caste to target her during an interview with Tucker Carlson.

Now the MAGA base is attacking her (again) over her Sikh identity.

Well. pic.twitter.com/ym2eKK40qN

— Sensei Kraken Zero (@YearOfTheKraken) June 8, 2025

The Trump administration also perpetuates this unfounded Brahmin-privilege narrative in their ludicrous attacks on India regarding the purchase of Russian oil. White House Trade Adviser Peter Navarro tried to invoke caste politics and insisted that Brahmins are the true beneficiaries of this trade.

Dhillon also faced corruption charges after a June 2023 story in The Guardian revealed that a non-profit under her leadership invested over $1 million in her legal practice.

“The Guardian has found that at least $1.32m has been transferred from the Center for American Liberty (CAL) to her law firm, Dhillon Law Group, in a move one charity expert described as problematic. Additionally, state and federal filings show Dhillon takes a $120,000 salary from CAL for a two-hour work week,” the report unveiled.

Harmeet Dhillon’s equally radical law firm partner

John-Paul-Deol is one of the partners in “The Dhillon Law Group.” He acts like an online troll who regularly insults Hindus and Hindu gods. He sent out a disparaging tweet for Lord Shiva in reaction to a user’s post denouncing terrorist Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale on The Wire’s article, in 2023.

Although the tweet was eventually removed, he has a history of using casteist and racial epithets to attack Hindus and Sikhs who don’t share his beliefs. He frequently targets “Brahmins,” mocks Hindus as “Lindus” and calls them the most “backward civilization.”

Deol, a fervent supporter of the anti-caste Hinduphobic law in the United States, likewise demonised Vedas by associating them with caste. Ironically, he dubbed a fellow Sikh named Puneet Sahani as “Mahachura” for exposing the agenda.

Deol even dog-whistled about an Federal Bureau of Investigation special agent of Indian descent following the arrest of terrorist Harpeet Singh, who was in charge of carrying out assaults in Punjab, by the FBI field office in Sacramento. He shared a photograph of the officer with “accha (okay)” and later justified his action by claiming that the agency had already posted about the latter.

Conclusion

The only thing greater than Trump’s conceited conduct is his misguided notions about the sway he thinks he possesses over the rest of the world. He is employing every fraudulent propaganda peddled by the Indian opposition regarding the connection between Gautam Aadani and Mukesh Ambani with the Modi government as well as the caste-politics plank to provoke voters, in order to intimidate New Delhi into complying with his demands.

Trump’s desperation has led him to reduce international diplomacy to mere local political maneuvering but India stands firm, only adding to his frustration. Nonetheless, the recent developments that might appear unprecedented are, in reality, not particularly surprising, considering Trump’s inflated ego and the anti-India individuals he has surrounded himself with, who have not only refrained from vocally opposing India but have also glorified Khalistani terrorism.