FM Nirmala Sitharaman Presents White Paper In LS, Highlights UPA's Economic Failures

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the ‘White Paper’ on economic mismanagement by the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) in Lok Sabha on Thursday. The White Paper on the nation’s economy compared the UPA years and 10 years of Modi government.

Nirmala Sitharaman tabled the White Paper in English and Hindi languages, which comprised a list of failures of the UPA government and a list of steps taken by the NDA government to turn the economy around, build the nation’s image and instill hope in people’s minds.

The White Paper discussed the macroeconomic situation of India under the UPA government, where double-digit inflation, ailing banking sector following excessive lending during the boom phase, and high policy uncertainty marred India’s business climate, dented its image and the people’s confidence about their future, despite the Vajpayee-led NDA government having handed over a healthy and resilient economy with high growth potential in 2004.

It also discussed the mismanagement and short-sighted handling of the public finances during FY04-FY143. It mentioned, “Numerous scams were bringing colossal revenue losses for the exchequer and fiscal and revenue deficits spiralling out of control. In 2014, our government inherited a deeply damaged economy whose foundations had to be rebuilt to enable self-sustaining long-term economic growth.”

The document on economic mismanagement aimed to settle the long-standing debate on the ‘issue of the economy’ once and for all before the Lok Sabha elections.

WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF ‘WHITE PAPER’

BJP leader and Standing Committee on Finance chairman Jayant Sinha on Wednesday said the government’s proposed ‘white paper’ will highlight the country’s “poor economic condition” when the Congress-led UPA left power and how the incumbent relief brought the turnaround.

“India’s GDP growth had slowed down to five per cent, inflation had risen to ten per cent, NPAs of banks had risen to ten per cent. The country was facing balance of payment crisis,” the MP from Jharkhand’s Hazaribagh said.

He said that it is “necessary that we present before the people that how a change has set in into the economy… There were deficiencies in every sector… If the economy is shining today and going ahead rapidly, it is due to our policies and work in these 10 years.”

With the government set to table the ‘White Paper’, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi said that the ongoing Budget session of Parliament has been extended by a day till February 10 (Saturday).

PM MODI’S TAKE ON ECONOMY

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Wednesday, gave a fiery speech in the Rajya Sabha during his reply to ‘Motion of Thanks’ to President Droupadi Murmu’s address on January 31.

He took a jibe at the Congress and said that it “openly strangled the democracy”. He said, “the Congress that dissolved democratically-elected governments overnight, the Congress that jailed the Constitutional decorum, the Congress that tried to lock up newspapers – that Congress has now acquired the habit to create narratives of breaking the country.”

He highlighted the difference in the growth of the nation’s economy and said that Congress spent 10 years in bringing India from 12th to 11th rank, just one position up.

“The Congress that brought India’s economy from number 12 to number 11 in 10 years, we brought India’s economy to number 5 in just 10 years and this Congress is here to give us long speeches on economic policies,” the prime minister said.

“During the Congress’ time…we were in fragile five,” PM Modi said, adding that now our economy is “in top five”.

“The crisis of those years has been overcome, and the economy has been put firmly on a high sustainable growth path with all-round development,” the finance minister had said during her speech on February 1.

“It is now appropriate to look at where we were then till 2014 and where we are now, only for the purpose of drawing lessons from the mismanagement of those years. The government will lay a ‘white paper’ on the table of the House,” Sitharaman had said.

OPPOSITION’S TAKE ON ‘WHITE PAPER’

Leader of Congress in Lok Sabha, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said that they have no “problem” with the Centre’s ‘White Paper’. Talking to news agency ANI, Chowdhury said “But Mehul Choksi’s papers should also be brought to the House. Why are banks looted under their government? What is their relation with those who loot banks and run away abroad?…”

RJD MP Manoj Jha, on the other hand, said that “white paper will turn into a white elephant”. “White paper means you can specify the number of jobs given…where have you reached? So this isn’t white paper but a white elephant just before the elections,” Jha added.

Earlier, DMK MP Dayanidhi Maran had said, “The Finance Minister took a long time to hail praises but delivery was zero. They are going to present a white paper on the previous government… Nothing much has happened in the last 10 years.”

Talking to reporters, Maran said, “The people of the country are already disappointed. Moreover, you realise that performance incentives are given to the bridge companies, and not going to the deserving ones. People are rejected with this budget.”

CONGRESS UNVEILS ‘BLACK PAPER’

Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, who unveiled the party’s ‘Black Paper’ in response to the ‘White Paper’ brought by the Centre in the Parliament’s Budget session, said Prime Minister Narendra Modi never mentioned the number of jobs created by the Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) set up by former Prime Minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru.

Addressing the press conference along with other senior party leaders on Thursday morning, the Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha said, “Prime Minister Narendra Modi never mentions the number of jobs created by the Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) set up by former Prime Minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru. Whenever PM Modi speaks in Parliament, he always tries to hide his government’s failures.”

(With PTI, ANI inputs)