India, Feb. 21 -- The Indian government is looking into reports of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) funding election-related activities, with the external affairs ministry on Friday describing the matter as "deeply troubling" since it relates to foreign interference in internal affairs.

Various government agencies, departments and ministries are looking into the matter, which has become a hot button issue in domestic politics since the Trump administration's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) announced on February 16 that it cancelled allocations of hundreds of millions of dollars by USAID around the world, including $21 million for "voter turnout in India".

"We have seen the information that has be...