Former Congress party chief Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday said Moody’s Investors Service had rated Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s handling of the economy only ‘a step above junk’ and cautioned that the worst was yet to come.
“Moody’s has rated Modi’s handling of India’s economy a step above JUNK. Lack of support to the poor and the MSME sector means the worst is yet to come,” Mr. Gandhi posted on Twitter, a day after the international ratings agency downgraded India’s sovereign credit rating to ‘Baa3’ from ‘Baa2’.
In a separate online press conference, former Lok Sabha MP and the Congress’s Punjab chief Sunil Jakhar demanded that the Centre should make the minimum support price (MSP) a legally binding right for farmers, asserting that the Centre’s announcements on MSP, including Monday’s, mostly remained on paper.
Except for wheat and paddy, which were procured by government agencies, Mr. Jakhar claimed that most farm produce was being sold at lower rates in the open market resulting in the farmers losing out.
“The intention of the government is doubtful. If it wants to help the farmer, give him the due price for his farm produce. If the MSP is declared and the farmer does not get it for his crops, then the Prime Minister’s promise of doubling farmers’ income will remain a pipe dream,” Mr. Jakhar told reporters.
The Punjab Congress chief also sought to know as to why the Centre was yet to notify the report of the CACP (Commission for Agricultural Costs & Prices) on fixing the MSPs of various crops and called it a ‘betrayal of farmers’.
Asserting that the current exodus of migrant workers to their home States would have an adverse impact on the country’s economy, Mr. Jakhar said that it had already created a shortage of labour for paddy transplantation in North India.
He said the government needed to immediately transfer an amount of ₹10,000 to each poor family and follow it up with monthly transfers of ₹7,500 over the next six months, which would help in stopping the exodus and reviving demand.
The Congress leader also questioned the government’s logic of offering loans to farmers who were committing suicide because of debt burden, and urged the Centre to waive off their loans and provide cash assistance.
“The Prime Minister wants to revive the economy, but what has the farmer got in the ₹20 lakh crore package announced by him,” he asked.
Separately, Mr. Gandhi tweeted: “11 crore Indians are employed by MSMEs. 1/3 of them are closing down permanently. It’s criminal for GOI not to give them cash support immediately”.
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