'Coming from position of arrogance' : Priyanka Chaturvedi hits back at Trump, is Rahul listening?

Her remarks came after US President Donald Trump announced the imposition of a 25-per cent tariff and penalties on India, and called India and Russia "dead economies".

New Delhi: Ally Shiv Sena (UBT)’s Priyanka Chaturvedi on Thursday attacked top Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for endorsing US President Donald Trump's India is a "dead economy", saying it can "only come from a position of arrogance or ignorance".

Incidentally, Special Invitee to Congress Working Committee and Rajya Sabha MP Rajiv Shukla also disapproved of Trump's remarks and said successive Congress and BJP governments, including the present one led by Narendra Modi, have contributed to keeping the Indian economy robust. Shukla's comments came before Rahul made his remarks.

Responding to queries on Trump's remarks that Indian and Russian economies are dead, Rahul told reporters in Parliament, "He is right. I mean everybody knows this except the Prime Minister and the finance minister. Everybody knows that the Indian Economy is a dead economy. I am glad that President Trump has stated a fact. Why are you asking this question?"

Chaturvedi, who quit Congress in April 2019 in the midst of Lok Sabha elections to join Shiv Sena, posted on 'X', "not that one needs to say it there’s enough legitimate data available to know that Indian economy is in the top-5 of the world and one of the fastest growing economies. Calling it a dead economy can only come from a position of arrogance or ignorance. Thank you for your attention to this matter!"

"India has economic challenges, yes. India has to work on its per capita income, yes. India has to address its wealth inequalities, yes. India has to address farmers and businesses concerns, yes. India has to address the unemployment challenge, yes. But economic challenges do not equate to a dead economy. Clearly a ‘trump’ed up statement to close a deal," Chaturvedi, a Rajya Sabha MP, said in a separate post.

Shukla said Trump's "dead economy" remark is wrong. "The Indian economy is not dead. We have initiated economic reforms by PV Narasimha Rao and Manmohan Singh, which was taken forward by AB Vajpayee. In ten years under him, Manmohan Singh further strengthened our economy and the present government has also done its job," he said.

"Our economy is not weak. If some say that they will finish us, it is an illusion. Trump is living in delusion," he added.