Auto sector slowdown claim made to defame India: BJP MP

The claim of the slowdown in the automobile sector was made to "defame" the country, a BJP member said in the Lok Sabha on Thursday and wondered how it could be true when there were traffic jams on roads.

Participating in a debate on agriculture, Virendra Singh Mast, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP from Balia in Uttar Pradesh, said there were many households that had multiple cars and there were traffic jams on roads as he questioned the claims of a slowdown in the auto sector.

There was no slowdown in the auto sector and those making such claims were trying to defame the country, he said.

According to the latest data released by the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers, passenger vehicle (PV) sales increased by 0.28 per cent to 2,85,027 units in October, from 2,84,223 units in the corresponding period last year. Passenger vehicle wholesales declined for the 11th consecutive month in the country in September.

Several BJP leaders have put forward a variety of arguments to rebut the opposition's attack on the government over the state of the economy.

Union minister Suresh Angadi had last month said "airports and trains are full and people are getting married" and this indicated that the country's economy was "doing fine".