India’s response to U.S. tariff pressure is more than a trade dispute — it’s a reaffirmation of strategic autonomy. From refusing to bow on Russian oil imports to protecting agriculture and rural livelihoods, New Delhi is signaling that its economic and foreign policy decisions will be made at home, not abroad. This standoff underscores a deeper geopolitical truth: India’s rise is defined by independence in both principle and practice.

India attaining political independence on August 15, 1947, was more than the end of colonial rule—it marked the beginning of a new era of...