With the Indian rupee hitting an all-time low and the country’s forex reserve on the decline, the TMC slammed the Centre for alleged financial mismanagement, stating that Prime Minister Narendra Modi should take steps to recover the economic situation or step down.
TMC national spokesperson Sukhendu Sekhar Ray said the BJP government’s slogan ‘Sabka Sath, Sabka Vikas’ (Taking along everyone, Development for all) has turned into ‘Sabka Sath, Sabka Sarwanash’, (Taking along everyone, debacle for all).
The BJP was quick to hit back, accusing the TMC of pushing West Bengal into a “debt trap”.
Talking to reporters, Mr Ray said, “The country has never witnessed such a situation since Independence. It seems the country is heading towards economic bankruptcy due to the flawed policies of the BJP government. It is a result of financial mismanagement.” The rupee pared its initial gains and settled 5 paise lower at its fresh lifetime low of 77.55 against the US dollar on Friday, as inflation concerns and the strength of the American currency weighed on the local unit.
“The rupee has hit an all-time low. It will have a cascading effect on every aspect of the economy — cost of imports will go up, the production will be badly hit. It will also have an impact on inflation which is at an all-time high,” he said.
Speaking on the decline of country’s forex reserves, Mr Ray wondered whether the Union government has a plan in place to salvage the situation.
“The Union finance ministry is clueless about how to tackle the situation. So far as policies of the Union government are concerned, there seems to be no respite in the near future. The BJP’s slogan of ‘Sabka Sath, Sabka Vikas’ has turned into “Sabka Sath, Sabka Sarwanash’,” the TMC MP claimed.
India’s forex reserves declined by USD 1.774 billion to USD 595.954 billion for the week that ended on May 6 on the back of a fall in the core currency assets, according to Reserve Bank of India (RBI) data released on Friday.
“If the prime minister cannot handle the situation and take steps to recover the economy, he should immediately step down. The country has put up with this economic mismanagement for the last eight years, ” Mr Ray said.
The BJP, however, came down heavily on Roy and asked him to save his advices for the TMC-led government in West Bengal, “which is responsible for the dismal economic condition of the state”.
“It is funny that TMC leaders are advising the Union government on fiscal mismanagement. The Centre is taking all the steps that are needed. The fact is that the TMC government in the last 11 years has pushed the state into a debt trap due to its whimsical economic policies,” BJP state spokesperson Samik Bhattacharya added.
