Sitharaman a 'missing minister': Congress attacks govt over economy, jobs, inflation

The Congress has labelled Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman a "missing minister" for only appearing in response to questions from Rahul Gandhi, amid rising inflation and economic concerns.

The Congress on Wednesday dubbed Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman a ''missing minister'', alleging that she surfaces only when Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi questions the government.

Launching a scathing attack on the finance minister, Congress leader Pawan Khera alleged that the economy had been pushed into a whirlpool due to the flawed policies of the Narendra Modi government.

Addressing a press conference, Khera said the rising inflation, weakening economic indicators, and policy failures stemmed from years of ''mismanagement'' and not merely global geopolitical tensions.

''Whatever is being seen before us, we had been warning that the economy is dying... The economy is on its deathbed. But you did not believe it and dubbed us as foreign agents playing into someone else's hands,'' Khera said.

Presenting figures on fuel inflation, Khera said petrol prices had increased by 38 per cent and diesel prices by 62 per cent over the last 12 years.

Drawing a comparison with the 2008 global financial crisis triggered by the collapse of Lehman Brothers, Khera claimed the Indian economy had demonstrated resilience at the time.

''Our shock absorbers were strong and steady. Therefore, the impact of the Lehman Brothers collapse, the crisis, and the housing bubble of the US was not felt in India,'' he said.

Targeting the BJP-led central government in his parliamentary constituency of Rae Bareli on Tuesday, Rahul Gandhi had warned that an economic storm was brewing in the country and that inflation would continue to rise until the current government was replaced.

Hitting back, the finance minister said that since 2014, ''The government has been serving every section of society and every sector through its policies and initiatives.''.

In a post on X, she responded to Rahul Gandhi's allegations by asking, ''Are the 58 crore Jan Dhan accounts meant for Adani or Ambani? The 57 crore Mudra loan accounts... who are they for?''.

Khera, training his guns at Sitharaman, said, ''Ministers in the Modi government remain absent during working hours and only surface to respond to Rahul Gandhi. They wake up only when Rahul Gandhi asks a question. In that sequence, the country's Finance Minister tweeted last night, enumerating achievements related to Jan Dhan accounts and the Mudra scheme.

''While Nirmala Sitharaman is technically the Finance Minister, she is, in reality, a 'missing minister.' The government talks about 'Lakhpati Didis' (prosperous sisters), but crores of women across the country are asking: why has she (Sitharaman) turned into a 'missing Didi'?'' he said.

Countering the statistics cited by the finance minister, Khera claimed that of the 58 crore Jan Dhan accounts, 15 crore -- more than 26 per cent -- were dormant, while 62 per cent had balances below Rs 1,000.

''The NPA rate under the Mudra Scheme has crossed 10 per cent, implying that no accountability remains,'' he said.

He claimed that under the PM Internship Scheme, only 7.34 per cent of participants completed the first phase of their internships, while 41 per cent dropped out midway. He also alleged that just 0.6 per cent of the allocation for the scheme was utilised in 2025-26.

Khera said the price of an LPG cylinder, which was Rs 414 in 2014, had risen to Rs 915, marking a hike of 121 per cent.

He also targeted the prime minister, saying, ''Narendra Modi has a habit of shifting the goalposts. First, he asked for 60 days; then, 60 months and now, he asks for time until 2047. Prime Minister Modi will paint dreams of 2047, but he will not disclose the figures pertaining to the intervening period.''.

The Congress leader noted that over the last two months, the country's foreign exchange reserves have depleted by USD 38 billion and due to the trade agreement with the United States, India's trade surplus has plummeted to USD 9 billion.

In recent months, he said, foreign investments worth Rs 2 lakh crore have been withdrawn from the Indian economy, while unemployment has crossed 15 per cent.