Rahul Gandhi's Fresh Salvo On Centre, Asks If China Issue Also An 'Act Of God'

India-China Border Dispute: The Congress leader’s comment is targeted at the finance minister’s speech in August when Sitharaman while briefing the media after the 41st meeting of the GST Council had said that the economy is facing an extraordinary 'Act of God' situation that may result in an economic contraction.

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New Delhi: In a fresh attack at the ruling BJP-led government over handling the economic and political situation in the country, Congress Rahul Gandhi on Friday took a gibe at Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman over her 'Act of God' remarks on the economy while posing questions whether the Narendra Modi government considers China’s provocation and flare-up at the border in Ladakh also an ‘act of God’. Also Read: India, China Agree To Honour Existing Border Agreement & Disengage Troops To Ease Tensions At LAC

The Congress leader’s comment on the micro-blogging site Twitter is targeted at the finance minister’s speech in August when Sitharaman while briefing the media after the 41st meeting of the GST Council had said that the economy is facing an extraordinary 'Act of God' situation that may result in an economic contraction, referring to the coronavirus pandemic. “This year we are facing an extraordinary situation. We are facing an Act of God where we may even see a contraction," she had said. Rahul Gandhi also showed concerns about the economic situation a day before saying the country is staring at bad times.

Earlier, senior Congress leader P Chidambaram also criticized the finance minister over the remarks, pointing if "the FM as the Messenger of God" answers how the "mismanagement" of the economy before the coronavirus pandemic should be described. "If the pandemic is an ‘Act of God', how do we describe the mismanagement of the economy during 2017-18, 2018-19, and 2019-20. Before the pandemic struck India?" Will the FM as the Messenger of God please answer?" the former finance minister asked. At the briefing, the FM also revealed that the pandemic has severely impacted GST and has widened to Rs 2.35 lakh crore this year from a shortfall of Rs 70,000 crore last fiscal. Chidambaram also hit out at the Centre’s for asking states to borrow more to make up for revenue losses due to pending GST dues.

The leader opined that the two options given by the Modi government to the states to bridge the GST compensation gap are unacceptable. "Under the first option, the states are asked to borrow by pledging their future receivables under Compensation cess. The financial burden falls entirely on the states," Chidambaram said.