Chidambram lambasts Sitharaman for write-up, says ‘only citing UPA’s achievements’

New Delhi, 26th June 2023: P Chidambaram, Congress leader and former Finance Minister, has responded to an article written by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, commenting at length about the Modi government’s accomplishments.

Chidambaram stated that the Modi government is standing tall because it is standing on the shoulders of the previous UPA government.

The Congress leader stated that any government in power for 5 to 10 years will be able to boast of the achievements mentioned by the finance minister.

He said, “Every government will have achievements to its credit. So does the Modi government. If the Modi government stands tall in some areas, it is because it is standing on the shoulders of the UPA government.”

FM Sitharaman stated in an article for The Indian Express that the Opposition’s job has been to disrupt and prolong the workings of the Modi government by filing court applications.

She wrote, “Over 15 cases, including on the GST, Article 370, vaccination, triple talaq, Central Vista, were vigorously argued only for them to lose in each one of them.”

In an attempt to refute her claims, Chidambaram said, “The FM has cited 5 examples of the Opposition taking the government to Court and LOSING the case She is wrong at least in three: The SC had declared triple talaq illegal even before Parliament passed a law. The Article 370 case has not yet been heard by the Court. Numerous cases under the GST laws are pending.”

He also addressed the finance minister’s claim that India ranked second in fruit and vegetable output, first in milk production, third in chicken production, and second in honey production.

He said, “The Hon’ble FM claims credit for India achieving top ranks in production of milk, honey and fruit and vegetables. These ranks were achieved years ago and we retain those ranks.”

He further said, “She forgets that Aadhaar was conceived, created and rolled out by the UPA government and the first transfers under DBT were done by the UPA government.”

FM Sitharaman stated in her essay that 11.72 crore toilets had been built in rural areas with 100% saturation. To this Chidambaram said, “She should read her own Government’s reports on how many of them are unused and unusable because they lack water.”

In her piece, the Finance Minister stated that the past nine years had been devoted to rescuing India from the “hopeless morass” that the previous government had plunged it into.

She stated that the following 25 years leading up to India@100, or 100 years of Indian independence, will necessitate the same “dedicated, corruption-free governance.”