New Delhi, June 1 (IANS) BJP leader Amit Malviya on Sunday targeted former finance minister P. Chidambaram for painting a grim picture of the economy and linking it to alleged wage stagnation and consumer exploitation due to lack of competition in some sectors.

Chidambaram’s attempt to credit the UPA government for economic reforms also did not go down well with Malviya who wrote in a post on social media platform X: “It’s truly pitiful how a former Finance Minister displays such selective amnesia regarding India’s economic journey.”

“To claim that the concept of ‘profit not being a bad word’ originated solely during his tenure conveniently ignores the reality that those reforms, however necessary, were half-baked measures, forced by a crippling Balance of Payments crisis,” said Malviya, in-charge of BJP’s National Information and Technology Department.

Earlier, the Congress leader, in a post on social media platform X, said: “That ‘profit’ in business is not a bad word became government policy in 1991 when Dr Manmohan Singh was finance minister.”

“The question is how the profit must be shared among promoters, shareholders, labour, government, consumers, society and other stakeholders,” he said.

Malviya responded by saying, “The former Minister pontificates on profit-sharing, yet seems to forget the UPA era’s notorious legacy — the ‘Jayanti Tax’, rampant corruption scandals, and an environment of policy paralysis that left India languishing among the ‘Fragile Five.’ Big industries weren’t just hesitant, they were actively looking for exits. Profit sharing? Under the UPA, profits seemed reserved for a select few, while genuine enterprise was stifled.”

‘Jayanti Tax’ is a term used by the BJP to allege corruption under the then environment minister Jayanthi Natarajan in matters related to granting green nod to projects.

While slamming Chidambaram, Malviya also showcased the NDA government’s flagship schemes.

“Initiatives like MUDRA Yojana and Stand Up India have empowered over 30 crore aspiring entrepreneurs, fostering grassroots prosperity and ensuring the fruits of growth are shared far more widely than ever conceived during his tenure. That is tangible benefit-sharing, not hollow rhetoric,” he wrote in his post.

Earlier Chidambaram remarked about the economy and said, “As the Chief Economic Adviser has said many times, the tilt is in favour of capital/promoters and against labour. Wages have stagnated.”

“I may add that because of lack of sufficient competition, consumers are exploited in several sectors, for example, air travel, insurance and pharmaceuticals,” he said.

–IANS

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