Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday hit back at Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Mahua Moitra over her ‘Pappu’ jibe. The minister opted for an explanatory speech at the Lok Sabha to take on the TMC leader, who questioned the “macroeconomic fundamentals” and also accused the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led BJP government at the Centre of spreading “falsehood” about India’s growth.
Sitharaman spoke about the post-poll environment in Gujarat and West Bengal, saying that while the western state was peaceful following the BJP’s victory in the recently concluded assembly elections, in the eastern region there was “arson, looting, rape and burning of houses of our party workers” last year when the TMC emerged victorious.
“In democracy, people give matchsticks in the hands of the government. So, the question should not be that who gave the matchsticks but how the matchsticks were used,” the finance minister said.
Addressing the issue of “macroeconomic fundamentals”, Sitharaman further stated that if Moitra “looks back into her own backyard, she will find Pappu in West Bengal”.
“So, there is no doubt…when there are wonderful schemes which can benefit common people, West Bengal sits over it and doesn’t (implement) them… you don’t need to search anywhere else for Pappu,” the minister said.
Sitharaman added that funds under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act 2005 (MNREGA) could not be released to Bengal since March 2022 as the TMC-headed state government has not yet replied to complaints of misuse of funds.
She also said that India is the fastest growing major economy in the world with inflation within bearable limits.
‘Pappu’ is a term that the BJP often uses to describe Congress leader and party’s former president Rahul Gandhi.
Moitra, who is known for her fiery speeches and vocal criticism of PM Modi and his government, participated in a debate in Lok Sabha on Tuesday. During this, she mentioned dip in some macroeconomic data and repeatedly asked on floor who the real ‘Pappu’ is. She also said that the real question is not who started the fire, but who gave the “mad man” the matches.
“This government and the ruling party coined the term Pappu. You use it to denigrate and signify extreme incompetence. But the statistics tell us who the actual Pappu is,” Moitra said.
She also took shots at the saffron camp for their recent dethroning in Himachal Pradesh by Congress for which she targetted BJP national president JP Nadda, who hails from the northern hill state. “Who is the Pappu now?”
