PM Modi's decisive leadership driving economy's growth amid global challenges: BJP

The BJP alleged on Tuesday that the economic policies of the previous Congress governments were identified with ”failed socialism and crony capitalism”, whereas Prime Minister Narendra Modi has boosted free market while also helping the poor and providing corruption-free and transparent governance.

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson Gopal Krishna Agarwal said Modi’s decisive and strong leadership has ensured that India has the highest growth rate among all the big economies even though many countries, including those in its neighbourhood, have been hit hard by the twin disruptions of the COVID-19 pandemic and the Ukraine war.

The Indian economy is now the fifth biggest in the world and will soon occupy the third spot, Agarwal claimed at a press conference here, citing various indicators to assert that it is in a strong position.

The Congress’s policy has been about ”abusing” industrialists while ”hugging” them behind the curtains, he alleged. Modi is working for a strong nation and making India an economic powerhouse, the BJP leader said.

The service and manufacturing sectors are in an expansionary mode, the bank credit growth rate has been the highest in nine years, while the capital expenditure by the public sector and corporate earnings have risen, besides the direct tax collection, he said.

Agarwal said like other economies of the world, India also faces challenges, but the strength of its economy should not be judged by the difficulties it faces but by the resilience of its institutions and the strength of its leadership.

Inflation, despite hovering at a higher level than the RBI-mandated target, is lower than what is being seen in the Europe and the United States, he said. The Indian rupee has also depreciated less than other currencies against the US dollar, he added.

The government is alive to the challenges and has also worked to boost manufacturing, especially in the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) sector, as this will create more employment, Agarwal said.

The banking sector is now strong and will continue to drive the economy’s strength, he asserted.