AAP MP Ashok Mittal Urges Boycott of U.S. Soft Drink Brands Over Tariff Hike at LPU Event

Speedy Summary

• AAP Rajya Sabha MP Ashok Kumar Mittal has announced a ban on U.S. soft drink and beverage companies at Lovely Professional University (LPU) in Jalandhar, Punjab, if the proposed 50% tariff hike on Indian goods by the United States takes effect on August 27, 2025.
• Mr. Mittal, who is LPU’s Founder-Chancellor and a businessman from Punjab, voiced this boycott call citing fairness concerns over the tariff hike. he stated that his call resonates with people globally.
• On August 7,2025,Mr. Mittal wrote an open letter to U.S. President Donald Trump describing the tariffs as ‘unfair’ and urging dialog over discord in trade relations between India and the United states.
• In his letter to President trump shared publicly via social media, he suggested such tariffs could lead India’s population of 146 crore to consider restricting U.S.-based businesses operating within it’s borders.

Indian Opinion Analysis
The announcement by Ashok Kumar mittal underscores rising tensions in trade relations between India and the United States as discussions around global tariffs gain momentum.While campus-wide bans at Lovely Professional University are symbolic steps tied to specific institutions or groups choosing boycott measures against certain American companies, they reflect broader dissatisfaction with international economic policies perceived as unilateral or unfair.

This particular move brings attention to India’s increasingly assertive stance in trade negotiations with larger economies like that of the USA-aiming perhaps for parity or mutual concessions rather-than-regionally imbalanced+ sanctions whether arbitration-high-ruledirect-to stretching_limits-comments-focus-restrict=’.$balance*/..adjustedinterpretation←allocation occur?