Nirmala Sitharaman hits out at Congress for 'fear-mongering' and 'obstruction'

New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday slammed the Congress, saying the opposition party should stop being obstructionists and avoid spreading fear among the public.

She highlighted that the government headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been serving every section of society since 2014.

"Since 2014 we continue to serve every sector and every section of our society through our policies and initiatives.

"Farmers, the poor, women, youth, MSMEs are at the core of our governance structure," she said in a post on X.

She wondered if 58 crore JanDhan accounts, 57 crore MUDRA loans, and one crore SVANidhi accounts were for Adani or Ambani.

Sitharaman further asked if PM Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana, PM Vishwakarma Yojana, PM Internship scheme, and PM KISAN are meant for Adani or Ambani.

Agriculture credit witnessed a growth of 15.7 per cent and MSME loans rose by 33 per cent last year, she said.

Her reaction came after Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, earlier in the day, warned of a massive economic storm moving inexorably towards the country, the likes of which "we have never experienced".

Gandhi also pointed out that the suffering caused by the Centre's policies over the last 12 years would not be borne by industrialists but by farmers, labourers, small traders and the youth.

"I say this every day. Narendra Modi ji, start taking action. Begin helping and protecting the farmers, small traders and youth. Otherwise, the country will face an immense loss. Narendra Modi ji looks this way and that way, but takes no action," Gandhi said.

Slamming Prime Minister Narendra Modi for flying off on a five-nation tour right after his appeal to the people to refrain from going abroad, the Congress leader also said that the grand economic structure built by Adani-Ambani will collapse in the storm, but the tycoons will be in their palaces while the common person will bear the brunt.