Senior BJP leader Arun Jaitley took on finance minister P Chidambaram for his comment that the amount of economics Narendra Modi knew could be written on the “backside of a postal stamp” saying that this statement comes from a “keen student of economics who can be credited with pushing India’s GDP growth to below 5%.”
Complimenting Modi for expediting economic activity in Gujarat, Jaitley said, “His ability does not require certification of Chidambaram. But will Chidambaram with his customary wisdom educate us on the extent of economic knowledge and understanding his de facto PM candidate Rahul Gandhi possesses?”
“Chidambaram believes that he is a principal repository of all economic Wisdom,” Jaitley added. “It is a different matter that he along with the other members of the UPA’s dream team to manage the economy, have presented to the country not a dream but a nightmare.”
Citing former PMs PV Narasimha Rao and Atal Behari Vajpayee, Jaitley said that political administrators who manage the economy are not known by their academic attributes, but by the footprints of performance they leave behind.
“Experts are always available for special assignments in a government. It’s a different matter that the Congress party chooses to make them finance ministers,” Jaitley said.
{{/usCountry}}“Experts are always available for special assignments in a government. It’s a different matter that the Congress party chooses to make them finance ministers,” Jaitley said.
{{/usCountry}}He said unlike Modi, Chidambaram and Singh did not have the ability to overrule their critics. “Observers today do not share Chidambaram’s opinion about Modi. In fact, the revival of the investment cycle is being linked to a change in government,” Jaitley said.