Citing communications with the US Embassy, the government has informed Parliament that there was no funding of $21 million for “voter turnout” in India by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).The August 21 statement by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) in Rajya Sabha debunks earlier claims by the US Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and President Donald Trump, and subsequent allegations by the BJP that the Congress used external influence in India’s election process.The MEA statement confirmed a report published by The Indian Express on February 21 — that the $21-million aid for “voter turnout” did not come to India, but went to Bangladesh.The claim and controversy: Funds for ‘voter turnout’On February 16 this year, DOGE, which was led by Elon Musk at the time, posted on its X handle that it had “cancelled”, among other projects, USAID funding of “$21 million for voter turnout in India”.On February 19, President Trump said in a speech delivered in Miami: “Why do we need to spend $21m for voter turnout in India? Wow, $21m! I guess they were trying to get somebody else elected.”On February 20, the head of the BJP’s IT department Amit Malviya said in a series of posts on X that the US President had “confirmed that there was indeed an attempt to influence the Indian election and install someone other than Prime Minister [Narendra] Modi”.The same day, the Congress demanded a White Paper on USAID fundings.The Express investigation: It was Bangladesh, not IndiaStory continues below this adThe next day (on February 21) The Indian Express reported that the $21 million grant was sanctioned in 2022 for Bangladesh, not India.Official records and other documents accessed by this newspaper showed that $13.4 million had been disbursed, ostensibly for “political and civic engagement” among Bangladesh students ahead of the January 2024 elections, and projects that put a question mark on the integrity of these elections. This was seven months before the ouster of then Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.At the centre of the dispute were two USAID grants on DOGE’s list that were channelled via the Consortium for Elections and Political Process Strengthening (CEPPS), a group based in Washington, DC, which specialises in “complex democracy, rights and governance programming”. The Indian Express report on USAID.The two grants were, as per DOGE’s claim, $22 million for “inclusive and participatory political process” in Moldova; and $21 million for “voter turnout in India”.Story continues below this adThe first grant — with Federal Award Identification Number AID117LA1600001 (an ID specific to each grant) — was indeed awarded to CEPPS in September 2016 to “promote” an “inclusive and participatory political process” in Moldova.But records showed no USAID-funded CEPPS project in India since 2008. Instead, the only ongoing USAID grant to CEPPS, matching the denomination of $21 million and the purpose of voting, was sanctioned — with Federal Award Identification Number 72038822LA00001 — in July 2022 for the “Amar Vote Amar” (My Vote is Mine) project in Bangladesh. In November 2022, the purpose of this grant was modified to “USAID’s Nagorik (Citizen) Program”.Between July 2022 and October 2024, this $21-million grant was split into six sub-grants: two each for three CEPPS member organisations — International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES); International Republican Institute (IRI); and National Democratic Institute (NDI).The confirmation: Several posts on social mediaOn September 11, 2024, a month after Sheikh Hasina’s ouster on August 5, the Micro Governance Research (MGR) program of the University of Dhaka and MGR’s director associate professor Aynul Islam posted two near-identical messages on Facebook and LinkedIn.Story continues below this adUnder the header “It’s Not Suddenly ‘Spring’! “Hello Bangladesh 2.0”, the posts credited “544 youth events and programs in the university campuses across Bangladesh” organised in two years since September 2022 “to promote youth democratic leadership and civic engagement that directly reached 10,264 university youth through 221 action projects and 170 democracy sessions, among others!”When contacted by The Indian Express, Islam confirmed that “all these were possible with the generous support and partnership from the IFES and USAID Bangladesh under the #Nagorik program.”In December 2024, Islam became the founding director of Applied Democracy Lab (ADL), established at the University of Dhaka “with the support from USAID and IFES”.On January 8, 2025, days before it was wound up, USAID Bangladesh had posted on Facebook: “Excited to partner with the University of Dhaka to unveil the new Applied Democracy Lab (ADL).”Story continues below this adIslam also confirmed that USAID funded the Nagorik program through CEPPS. On the cancellation of funds announced by DOGE, he said: “This is a setback but the lab is within the university setup and we are hopeful it will continue.”There was more.While visiting Washington DC on December 2, 2024, USAID’s Political Processes Advisor in Dhaka Lubain Chowdhury Masum posted on LinkedIn: “Although NDI does not have an in-country presence in Bangladesh, it is one of the three prime partners, along with IRI and IFES, under the USAID-funded $21 million CEPPS/Nagorik project. NDI…participated in the Pre-Election Assessment Mission (PEAM) and the Technical Assessment Mission (TAM) in Bangladesh under the CEPPS/Nagorik project, which I manage.”Wider footprint: at least five other countriesThe $21 million grant was not the only ‘political’ fund offered by USAID in the subcontinent. There were at least another five awarded to CEPPS in India’s neighbourhood. These are:Pakistan: A $21 million project sanctioned in November 2022 to strengthen “locally-led interventions that promote more peaceful communities” by “orienting activities around addressing political marginalisation, weak governance and fragile social cohesion as core factors affecting violent extremism.” DOGE claimed to have saved $5.8 million by cancelling this project on February 10.Story continues below this adSri Lanka: A $9.5 million grant initiated in May 2024 for “improved elections and political processes in Sri Lanka.” DOGE claimed to have saved $5.6 million by cancelling this project on February 12.Maldives: A $19 million grant since July 2020 for SIMD — “Strong and Inclusive Democracy” — activities. DOGE claimed to have saved $4.37 million by cancelling this project on February 12.Nepal: A $14 million grant was initiated in March 2023 with a cryptic description: “Democratic Processes” in Nepal. DOGE claimed to have saved $7.33 million by cancelling this project on March 1.Myanmar: A $17.6 million grant sanctioned in August 2023 under “USAID-Burma Advancing Democracy Associate Cooperative Agreement”. DOGE claimed to have saved $5.8 million by cancelling this project on February 12.Story continues below this adHowever, DOGE’s cancellation of the Bangladesh ‘election’ fund on February 11 did not lead to any savings as the last tranche of $6 million of the $21 million had been already released on August 10, 2024, records show.