‘PM Modi’s 8 years of misgovernance is a case study’: Rahul Gandhi takes a dig at Centre

Taking a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the several issues such as the current power crisis, unemployment, rising inflation and the farmer crisis, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday said that the Modi government’s eight years of “misgovernance” was a case study on how to ruin a once fast growing economy in the world.

“PM Modi’s 8-years of misgovernance is a case study on how to ruin what was once one of the world’s fastest growing economies,” Gandhi tweeted, listing the various crises that the nation faces.

Various states are struggling with power shortages amid the ongoing heatwave. Several parts of the country are facing long hours of blackouts, while some industries are cutting output due to coal shortage, threatening the economy’s revival from the pandemic-induced slump. The risk of a further spike in inflation is rising at a time when the government is struggling to rein in high energy prices fueled by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Two days ago, on Saturday, senior Congress leader P Chidambaram also took to Twitter to criticize the Modi government over the issue of widespread power outages. He said the government has found the “perfect solution” to it which is to cancel passenger trains and run coal rakes.

“Abundant coal, large rail network, unutilised capacity in thermal plants. Yet, there is acute power shortage. Modi Government cannot be blamed. It is because of 60 years of Congress rule,” Chidambaram tweeted.

Meanwhile, data from the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) shows that India’s labour force participation rate (LFPR) has fallen to just 40% from an already low 47% in 2016. This suggests not only that more than half of India’s population in the working-age group (15 years and older) is deciding to sit out of the job market, but also that this proportion of people is increasing.