New Delhi: Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday launched a strong attack on the Indian National Congress, accusing the opposition of acting as obstructionists and creating unnecessary fear among the public through its criticism of the Centre’s economic policies.
Responding to remarks made by Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, Sitharaman defended the record of the government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and highlighted several welfare and financial inclusion schemes introduced since 2014.
In a post on X, the Finance Minister said the government has consistently focused on serving all sections of society, including farmers, women, youth, the poor and small businesses. She stated that welfare driven governance remains central to the administration’s approach and questioned the opposition’s repeated claims that government policies only benefit large industrialists.
Sitharaman pointed to flagship schemes such as Jan Dhan Yojana, MUDRA loans and the SVANidhi initiative, asking whether these programmes were intended for corporate groups as alleged by critics. She also referred to welfare initiatives including the PM Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana, PM Vishwakarma Yojana, PM Internship Scheme and PM KISAN, asserting that they were designed to directly support ordinary citizens and economically weaker sections.
Highlighting economic indicators, the Finance Minister said agriculture credit recorded a growth of 15.7 per cent while loans extended to MSMEs increased by 33 per cent over the past year. According to her, these figures demonstrate the government’s commitment to strengthening grassroots economic activity and supporting small enterprises.
Her remarks came after Rahul Gandhi warned that the country was heading towards a severe economic crisis unlike anything experienced before. Gandhi claimed that the impact of the Centre’s economic policies over the past 12 years would be borne mainly by farmers, labourers, small traders and unemployed youth rather than wealthy industrialists.
The exchange reflects the intensifying political battle between the ruling BJP and the Congress ahead of upcoming political contests, with both sides sharply divided over the country’s economic direction and governance priorities.
