NEW DELHI — Despite steadfast denials from Narendra Modi’s government that Washington mediated the India-Pakistan standoff last May, newly disclosed lobbying records reveal a far more intricate dance between New Delhi and the Trump administration than officials publicly acknowledged, according to Dawn News.
Federal filings under the Foreign Agent Registration Act expose how SHW LLC, a Washington firm helmed by former Trump spokesman Jason Miller, orchestrated a flurry of high stakes contacts on India’s behalf during the four-day conflict following the Pahalgam incident. On May 10 alone, the firm approached White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, and National Security Council official Ricky Gill to discuss “media coverage” of the escalating crisis.
The revelation contradicts India’s External Affairs Ministry, which has repeatedly dismissed President Trump’s claims that he threatened trade sanctions to force a ceasefire and rejected Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s public recognition of Gill’s role in defusing tensions.
The $1.8 million annual contract, signed in April 2025 at $150,000 monthly, marks an unprecedented departure from standard diplomatic protocol. While Indian missions have retained lobbyists since the 1950s for political advice, this represents the first time such a firm has directly arranged ministerial meetings rather than merely consulting on strategy.
According to The Hindu, SHW’s sixty entries detailed arrangements for External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, and even opposition leader Shashi Tharoor to meet Vice President J.D. Vance, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and CIA Director John Ratcliffe.
“Such meetings are routinely sought by the mission directly,” two government officials told the newspaper, speaking anonymously. A former diplomat suggested the arrangement reflects “new rules of engagement” under Trump, leaving India “little choice but to play along.”
As U.S.-India trade tensions spiked over reciprocal tariffs and Indian oil purchases, the lobbying intensified thirty calls alone addressed trade conversations. The diplomatic chill thawed only after Modi and Trump exchanged public pleasantries on social media, with SHW dutifully flagging the prime minister’s posts to White House officials.
The embassy defended the practice as consistent with “local requirements,” but the scale suggests Delhi recognized that access in Trump’s Washington required more than traditional diplomacy.
