New Delhi, May 11 (IANS) Union Minister Giriraj Singh on Monday slammed Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi over his remarks on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, urging people to cut fuel consumption and avoid foreign travel amid the global energy crisis triggered by the US-Iran war.

Questioning Rahul Gandhi’s criticism, Giriraj Singh asked whether India’s first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, should also be considered a failure during the 1962 war with China, when citizens were asked to contribute gold due to shortages in the country.

The remarks came after Prime Minister Modi on Sunday appealed to citizens to reduce fuel consumption and avoid unnecessary foreign travel in view of the global energy crisis caused by the conflict between the US and Iran.

Responding to the appeal, Rahul Gandhi said that over the past 12 years, the country had been brought to such a stage that the public was now being told what to buy and what not to buy, where to go and where not to go.

Rahul Gandhi took to X and wrote, “Yesterday, Modi Ji called upon the public to make sacrifices — do not buy gold, do not travel abroad, consume less petrol, cut down on fertilisers and cooking oil, take the Metro, and work from home. These are not words of counsel; they are evidence of failure.”

Reacting to the statement, Giriraj Singh told IANS, “Perhaps Rahul Gandhi does not know the history of the country. PM Narendra Modi is a successful statesman in India as well as globally. The COVID-19 pandemic is an example of his leadership. But I want to ask Rahul Gandhi whether Jawaharlal Nehru was a failure during the 1962 war with China. At that time, people were asked to donate gold because there was a shortage in the country.”

He further said, “Under Public Law, wheat used to be imported from the United States. When former Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri rejected rotten wheat, officials were shocked, and appeals were made on the radio. At that time, I was a Class 10 student. Announcements were made asking Hindus to observe Ekadashi fasts and Muslims to observe Roza due to food shortages. Does that mean Lal Bahadur Shastri was a failed Prime Minister?”

“I accept that PM Modi had appealed to people to give up subsidies, and crores of people did so. We provided LPG cylinders to poor women. Whenever there has been a call for the nation, people have made sacrifices and contributed. If PM Modi has said this, then there is nothing wrong in it. We do not have enough gas right now, so people should adapt to the situation. I have been using an induction stove for the last five years, and I appeal to others to use it as well,” he added.

–IANS

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