The BJP flag.
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New Delhi: The BJP on Sunday termed the Congress' comment on net FDI inflows into India as "misleading", and said the opposition party's "fixation" with the matter reflects "either ignorance or a deliberate distortion of facts".
This came after the Congress alleged the "decline'' in net FDI (foreign direct investment) inflows into India reflects "tremendous investment uncertainty" in the country, with more businesses choosing to invest abroad.
Hitting back, BJP IT department head Amit Malviya wrote on X, "The Opposition and their cheerleaders' fixation with 'net FDI' is not only economically misleading - it reflects either ignorance or a deliberate distortion of facts".
He said India's gross FDI inflows stood at $81 billion in FY25, showing a 14 per cent year-on-year increase, despite global economic uncertainty and monetary tightening in the West.
Since 2014, cumulative FDI inflows have exceeded $670 billion, he said, adding that India continues to rank among the top five global FDI destinations.
The Modi government's reforms -- ranging from ease of doing business, PLI schemes, and digital infrastructure to taxation overhauls -- have established a "credible, rules-based investment climate" in the country, he added.
"More importantly, this is quality capital. FDI is now flowing into high-value sectors such as semiconductors, electric mobility, defence manufacturing, artificial intelligence, and green energy - not merely into real estate or speculative financial instruments," the BJP leader said.
"Contrast this with the UPA era, marked by policy paralysis, retrospective taxation, and scandals like 2G and Coalgate, which created a hostile environment for both domestic and foreign investors. Back then, capital flight was the norm," he said, adding, "Today, foreign capital is betting on India's future."
AICC general secretary Jairam Ramesh had claimed in a post on X that the just released RBI data revealed that net FDI inflows into India in 2024-25 plunged by an unprecedented 96 per cent to a measly $0.4 billion.
"Whatever whitewashing of an official explanation for this precipitous fall is being provided, the fact remains that this reflects tremendous investment uncertainty in India - which is deterring not only foreign investors but Indian companies as well, who would rather invest abroad than at home," the senior Congress leader said in his post.
"We ignore the implications of the dramatic decline at our own peril," the Congress leader said.
The data was released as part of the RBI's May edition of its monthly bulletin.
Net FDI moderated to $0.4 billion during 2024-25 from $10.1 billion a year ago, reflecting the rise in net outward FDI and repatriation FDI, the RBI report said.
Reacting to Ramesh's remarks, Malviya said globally, FDI performance is measured by gross inflows, as reported by institutions like UNCTAD and the IMF.
"Net FDI subtracts repatriation and Indian outbound investment, which unfairly distorts the picture - especially now that Indian companies are expanding abroad as global players," he said, adding, "Outbound FDI is a sign of economic maturity, not a liability."