New Delhi: In a bizarre statement, Bharatiya Janata Party MP Virendra Singh Mast, has claimed that the country is not going through a phase of economic recession as people can be seen wearing coats and jackets instead of kurta and dhoti. His statement comes at a time when the country is facing a tough challenge at the economic front.

While addressing a public meeting in Uttar Pradesh’s Balia he said: "There have been discussions in Delhi and the world, about a recession. If there was any recession, we would have come here wearing 'kurta' and 'dhoti', not coats and jackets. If there was a recession we would not have bought clothes, pants, and pajamas.”

He further said that India is the country of villages and not just metropolitan cities.

"I want to inform you that this country is a country of 6.5 lakh villages and not just cities like Delhi, Mumbai, and Hyderabad. Mahatma Gandhi, Dr. Hedgewar, Shyama Prasad Mukherjee and Jai Prakash Narain had expressed confidence in the villagers and helped the country gain independence," he added.

Earlier, the Congress and 19 opposition parties on January 13 accused the BJP-led Central government of "complete mismanagement' of the economy.

They had said there has been an "alarming deterioration" in the livelihood status of the vast majority of people "due to the complete mismanagement of the Indian economy by the Modi government."

Virendra Singh Mast had earlier given a similar statement where he claimed "traffic jams" as an indicator of growth in the automobile sector.

"f there is a decline in automobile sales then why are there traffic jams on the roads? An atmosphere is being created that there is an economic slowdown to defame the nation and government,” he had said in December.