Congress accuses Modi govt of damaging Indian economy

The Congress on Friday claimed that the Indian economy has been well and truly devastated by a series of "five Modi-inflicted shocks", and said the government as well as its cheerleaders are being economical with the truth of the real state of the economy.

Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh said the Modi government, its drumbeaters and cheerleaders are living in a make-believe world.

The opposition party's assertions came a day after former Congress president and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi said everybody except Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman know that the country's economy is "dead".

In a post on X, Ramesh said, "Over the past decade, the Indian economy has been well and truly devastated by a series of five Modi-inflicted shocks. Nobody else can be held responsible." He said demonetisation completely disrupted our growth momentum and destroyed the livelihoods of crores of Indians.

"A fundamentally flawed GST--that is a Tax that is neither Good nor Simple--has wreaked havoc on thousands of business enterprises across the country, except the large companies who can afford to pay the cost associated with GST compliance," Ramesh said.

He further claimed that the record imports from China have led to the closure of lakhs of MSMEs across the country--in Gujarat alone, around a third of the MSMEs in the stainless steel industry have shut down their operations.

Exports in key areas are dependent on imports of raw materials, components, and intermediates from China, he said.

Ramesh pointed out that private investment has lost the buoyancy it demonstrated during 2004-14.

"Indian industrialists are acquiring citizenship of other countries in an ever increasing measure. The politically motivated and extortionist Raid Raj, coupled with the proliferation of Modani's tentacles, has led to a loss of confidence in the Indian economy," Ramesh alleged.

He argued that wages for the majority of Indians have stagnated in the last decade, across sectors and across classes.

"This is particularly so in rural India. Household savings have fallen sharply just as household debt has ballooned. Private mass consumption, one of the key drivers of growth, is sputtering just as luxury consumption has not ebbed, clearly pointing to sharpening economic inequalities," the Congress leader said.

"The Modi government, its drumbeaters and cheerleaders are living in a make-believe world. They are being economical with the truth of the real state of the economy," Ramesh said.

On Thursday, Gandhi had alleged that the BJP-led government has destroyed the country's economic, defence and foreign policies, and is "running the country to the ground".

Speaking with reporters in the Parliament House complex, Gandhi had also claimed that a trade deal with the US will happen and US President Donald Trump will define it.

Asked about Trump calling the Indian economy "dead", the Congress leader had said, "He is right, everybody knows this except the prime minister and the finance minister. Everybody knows that the Indian economy is a dead economy. I am glad that President Trump has stated a fact." He had alleged that the BJP has destroyed the Indian economy.