Kiren Rijiju vs Congress again. But now over India's GDP: 'Drinking too much beer or blind loathing'

The Kerala unit of Congress had earlier taken a swipe at the central government over the GDP growth with a beer mug graphic.

Union parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju and the Congress party are at loggerheads once again, this time over India's GDP. The fresh social media spat erupted on Wednesday after the Kerala Congress mocked the Centre's GDP claims with a beer mug graphic.

Union parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju (in picture) slammed the Congress party over its criticism. (PTI)

The Kerala Congress posted a photo of a beer mug with the fizz labelled as ‘official GDP’ and the drink beneath it marked as ‘Indian economy’. Rijiju launched a sharp attack at the Congress over this and said, “Is Congress Party in a state of deep intoxication due to drinking too much beer or Congressmen are so swayed by their blind loathing of India's growth that they have lost touch with the ground reality?”

Congress attacks govt over GDP projections

Earlier, the Congress also attacked the government over the GDP numbers, citing former finance secretary Subhash Chandra Garg's reported remarks on GDP numbers to attack the Modi government.

Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh shared a video clip of Garg in which he stated that by revising last year's GDP by as much as ₹6 trillion, the current year's GDP in the first quarter has gone up by around 10.3 per cent.

"If you had not revised last year's GDP, the growth in current prices would have been 2.6 per cent," Garg told a news channel.

Ramesh wrote on X that no matter how much the Modi government beats the drum of its fabricated GDP growth, conjured up through statistical jugglery by its team and media, its true reality will be exposed because what they are claiming is the complete opposite of ground realities.

"Former Finance Secretary Subhash Garg has now burst the bubble on this claim. His assessment is that the real GDP growth is around 2.6%, not 7.8%," Ramesh said.

"We want the economy to truly be strong, but the path to a strong economy doesn't come from embellishing numbers fabricated on a foundation of lies - it comes from accepting the truth," he added.

The government should first acknowledge the real economic situation, then undertake reforms - jobs should be created for the youth, MSMEs and private investment should be boosted, demand and incomes should rise, economic inequality should decrease, and instead of promoting crony capitalists, fair competition should be ensured, Ramesh said.

"The Modi government must understand: PR can polish the picture of GDP, but not the economy itself," the Congress general secretary said.

India's economy grew at a faster-than-expected 7.8% in the April-June quarter amid concerns of an economic downturn over the war in West Asia. Gross domestic product (GDP) growth in the first quarter of the 2026-27 fiscal slowed from a barnstorming 8.6 per cent in the previous quarter, but remained well above expectations when the conflict erupted and disrupted energy markets.

Modi hails India's GDP growth

On Tuesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi hailed India's GDP growth in the first quarter of FY27, calling it a reflection of the "collective strength" of the people and tok a "jhoot ki goonj" swipe at Congress and its leader Rahul Gandhi, accusing them of "spreading despair" in the country.

In a video message posted on X, PM Modi congratulated the people of India for their hard work and said the country's economic growth came despite global challenges, including wars, crises and disrupted supply chains. He also took a dig at the opposition accusing it of echoing falsehoods and spreading despair.

The ‘jhoot ki goonj’ jibe directed at the Congress comes amid Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi's ‘Chatron ki Goonj’ programme, a youth outreach campaign in the backdrop of the recent examination irregularities, including the NEET UG-2026.