Remarks about 'stealing of mangalsutras' have come true: Kharge attacks PM Modi

New Delhi: Amid rise in instances of women mortgaging gold, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge on Wednesday attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi saying his remarks during the Lok Sabha campaign about "stealing of mangal-sutras" have come true.

Quoting reports, Kharge said four crore women have mortgaged their gold and taken a loan of Rs 4.7 lakh crore between 2019 and 2024 and that 38 per cent of the total loans taken by women in 2024 were from gold loans. He also said the RBI data showed in February 2025 that gold loans increased by 71.3 per cent in a year.

"Narendra Modi-ji, you had talked about 'stealing of mangal-sutras'. That has now come true. In your rule, women have been forced to mortgage their gold ornaments. First you made women's 'stree-dhan' disappear by implementing demonetisation, now due to inflation and falling household savings, they are forced to mortgage their most valuable thing -- their jewellery," Kharge posted on 'X'.

Modi, during the Lok Sabha campaign, alleged that the Congress would take away 'mangal-sutras' and redistribute the wealth of the people. The allegation was denied by the Congress.

Alleging that the Modi government has worsened the economic situation so much that middle class families who buy two-wheelers are now unable to repay their loans, he said two-wheeler financiers are cutting down on lending for the first time since 2019, as loan defaults are on the rise.

He claimed 75 per cent of people buy two-wheelers on loan so that they can repay it slowly, but the financial crunch is so severe that as compared to last year, loans worth about Rs two lakh crore are still outstanding till September 2024, which has increased by Rs 40,000 crore in a year.

Two-wheeler sales have declined by 6 per cent in February 2025, Kharge said adding, "recession, financial crunch and reduction in spending capacity - this is the essence of the economy you run."