Peter Navarro, the trade advisor to Donald Trump, said that the Brahmins in India were “profiteering” while ordinary people were suffering.
Many Indians didn't even understand what actually he is speaking. This is a textbook example of speaking without knowledge.
In India, Brahmins are a caste group with diverse economic realities; some are wealthy, many are not. The country’s richest individuals today, including Mukesh Ambani and Gautam Adani or even Lakshmi Mittal, are not Brahmins. The elite Brahmins like Infosys Narayanamurthy are not in top 5 list at all.
Only months ago, Trump himself was trolled for claiming the India–Pakistan conflict was “1,500 years old,” a statement that ignored both colonial history and the actual timeline of partition.
Just as the leader rants loosely on matters he barely understands, his trade advisor seems to follow the same pattern, substituting sweeping stereotypes for facts.
Such statements are not harmless slips; they reinforce false narratives and undermine serious issues. If global leaders and advisors wish to comment on India, or any country, the least they can do is ground their words in reality rather than lazy assumptions. Anything less reflects poorly not only on them, but on the offices they hold.
It was seen as Navarro using “Brahmin” to mean “Indian elites” in general, without understanding caste realities. He ranted and didn't even corrected what he said.