Economy Is Fine As People Getting Married, Trains Running Full: Modi’s Minister Rejects Slowdown

Remember Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad’s bizarre defence against economic slowdown in the country where he cited good box office performance of Bollywood movies to reject the slowdown? Now, his colleague and another minister in the Narendra Modi Cabinet has gone a step ahead in defending his government over the poor economic health of the country.

Union minister Suresh Angadi dismissed the economic slowdown, asserting that "airports and trains are full and people are getting married". For him, these are the indicators of an economy doing fine.

Referring to the Opposition’s criticism over the sorry state of economy, the Minister of State for Railways said "some people" were trying to malign the image of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. "Airports are full, trains are full, people are getting married. Some people are doing this for nothing else but to malign the image of Narendra Modi," Angadi told reporters during an inspection of the soon to be commissioned Tunda Khurja eastern dedicated freight corridor.

Last month, Ravi Shankar Prasad had said that there was no economic slowdown in the country even as the growth in almost all the sectors declined significantly over the last few months. To support his argument, the law minister cited the box office collection of three Bollywood movies.

Also Read | 'Withdraw My Comment', Says Ravi Shankar Prasad After Drawing Flak On Bollywood Economics Remark

Addressing a press conference, Prasad had said that three movies earned Rs 120 crore on October 2, so there's no such thing as economic slowdown. "I was Information and Broadcasting Minister in former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's government and I am fond of movies. Movies have been doing huge business. Three movies released on October 2 and film critic Komal Nahta told me that the national holiday (October 2) saw earning of Rs 120 crore by three movies. Rs 120 crore comes in a country which has a sound economy," he said.

However, after being ridiculed on social media and criticism by Opposition parties, Prasad took back his remarks. "I had also explained in detail about the various measures the government has taken as pro-people move to strengthen our economy. Government of PM Narendra Modi always cares for the sensitivity of common people. Entire video of my media interaction is available on my social media. Yet I regret to note that one part of my statement has been completely twisted out of context. Being a sensitive person, I withdraw this comment," Prasad said.