Ahmedabad, Feb. 16 -- AhmedabadUnion home minister Amit Shah on Sunday accused Congress leader Rahul Gandhi of spreading "lies" and "misinformation" over India's trade negotiations with the United States (US), the European Union (EU), and the United Kingdom (UK), asserting that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has "safeguarded the interests" of farmers, dairy workers, cattle rearers and fishermen in the proposed agreements. Shah, after inaugurating India's first Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC)-based Public Distribution System (PDS) at Mahatma Mandir in Gujarat's Gandhinagar, said, "The Opposition is misleading the country regarding the Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) with the European Union and the UK, and the trade deal with America." He alleged that the Opposition was portraying the pacts as harmful to farmers. Speaking in the Lok Sabha, Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday launched a sharp attack on the central government over the India-US trade deal and the Union Budget 2026-27, telling US President Donald Trump that India must be treated "as an equal" in any trade negotiations and accusing the central government of compromising national interests, saying, "You have sold India" - remarks that triggered strong protests from treasury benches and a warning of a privilege notice against him. Shah, who is also the minister of cooperation, said, "I feel like laughing when Congress's Shahzada Rahul Gandhi stands in Parliament and talks about protecting farmers. The Congress has a long history of misleading the country, and now they are spreading lies about trade deals." Referring to the Congress's criticism that the agreements would destroy India's dairy sector, Shah said, "I want to assure the farmers, cattle rearers and fishermen of this country that in every trade deal signed with the European Union, England and America, Prime Minister Modi has safeguarded your interests completely. There is no need to worry." He further clarified on the dairy sector, responding to allegations that the deals would destroy it. "We are the people who expanded the dairy sector, not weakened it. In all the agreements, full protection has been given to dairy (sector)," Shah added. He contrasted the Modi government's record with the previous Congress-led UPA (United Progressive Alliance) administration. "Prime Minister Modi has always stood like a rock for the protection of farmers, whereas the previous government signed the Dunkel Proposal, making farmers insecure," he said, highlighting that the trade agreements open global markets for Indian agricultural products and fisheries while maintaining "100% protection" for domestic interests. He also challenged Gandhi to debate the issue on any public platform, adding that even the president of the BJP Yuva Morcha can come and debate on who has harmed farmers and who has worked for their welfare. Highlighting the Modi government's support for agriculture, Shah said that the agriculture budget rose from Rs.26,000 crore under the previous government to Rs.1.29 lakh crore under PM Modi. He said that loan waivers occurred only once in 70 years during the UPA period, while the current government has provided Rs.6,000 annually directly to farmers' accounts via PM-KISAN (Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi) for 10 years, reducing reliance on loans. Saturday's event centred on the launch of India's first CBDC-based Public Distribution System (PDS), a pilot initiative aimed at modernising and making food grain distribution transparent....