PATNA, Feb. 20 -- Congress leader and Lok Sabha MP Deepender Singh Hooda on Thursday lashed out at the Modi government's interim trade framework agreement with the United States, calling it an outright betrayal of Indian farmers, energy security and the nation's hard-earned sovereignty. Hooda made the sharp remarks while addressing newspersons at the Bihar Pradesh Congress Committee (BPCC) headquarters, Sadaqat Ashram, in Patna. Flanked by state party leaders, Hooda described the February 6 deal as nothing less than "mortgaging national interest." He insisted no trade agreement could justify opening Indian markets to duty-free American agricultural goods - from processed maize and sorghum to soybean oil, cotton, fruits and nuts - which he said would devastate livelihoods in states including Bihar, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Gujarat. "An attack on fields, threshing floors and farmers' daily bread is unacceptable," he told reporters, stressing that India's 1.44 billion people would reject any pact sacrificing rural interests. The BPCC, seizing the momentum, announced plans for an immediate statewide campaign to alert farmers and rural communities to the deal's dangers. BPCC president Rajesh Ram said the outreach would involve village meetings, door-to-door efforts and public discussions to explain how zero-tariff US imports could crash local crop prices, erode competitiveness and threaten food security in a state heavily reliant on agriculture. "Our kisans cannot pay the price for decisions taken far away - we will make every rural household understand the stakes," Ram declared....