Congressional Democrats from the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability conducted an investigation that revealed that Former President Donald Trump, during his presidency, did not report 17 gifts worth more than $47,000 that he and his family were given by India to the State Department. 

Between 2018 and 2021, President Ram Nath Kovind, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, the then Gujrat CM Vijay Rupani, Telangana CM K Chandrashekar Rao and the Embassy of India in the Philippines presented these gifts to Donald Trump and his family. In addition to Trump, India presented gifts to First Lady Melania Trump, as well as Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner and daughter Ivanka Trump. The majority of these gifts were given during Ivanka Trump’s trip to Hyderabad in 2017 and during Trump’s official visit to India in 2020. 

On Friday, an interim staff report called “Saudi Sword, Indian Jewellery, and a Larger-than-life Salvadoran Portrait of Donald Trump: The Trump Administration’s Failure to Disclose Major Foreign Gifts” was released. It is part of a larger investigation which claims that Trump and his family did not disclose more than 100 foreign gifts from numerous countries, including Saudi Arabia, China, Japan, Qatar, Uzbekistan, Bahrain, Austria, and Bangladesh, among others. These gifts were valued at $291,000. 

According to the report, failure to report and disclose gifts in accordance with the regulation breaches the Foreign Gifts and Decoration Act and may also contravene the Emoluments Clause and the Constitution, which prohibits the President from receiving benefits from foreign entities while in office. Additionally, under the Ethics in Government Act, the President must publicly disclose gifts above a certain value that they or their immediate family members receive. The committee has raised concerns about the potential for a foreign leader to use gifts as means of securing favours from Trump.

The report includes a section on India and mentions that PM Modi gave Trump a black marble table adorned with mother-of-pearl and stone inlay worth $1,400, along with cufflinks by designer Raghavendra Rathore presented in a box with $1,920. Additionally, Modi gifted Melania Trump a charm bracelet in a presentation box by  Raghavendra Rathore worth $2,750, while Kushner received Bandhgala jacket by the same designer in a presentation box worth $950. Ivanka Trump was gifted a painting on silk reportedly created by the Pichwai Painting Deccan School of India, framed and presented in a box, worth $2,200, and a bracelet by Raghavendra Rathore with was $2,450.

The National Archives currently possess a significant number of gifts mentioned in the Congressional report concerning Trump, however, it is mandatory under the law for the President and other federal officials to disclose publicly any gifts valued over $415. It is this particular regulation that the White House under Trump is accused of a violation.