Congress leader and MP Pramod Tiwari on Thursday criticised the white paper tabled by finance minister Nirmala Sitaraman in Lok Sabha. Tiwari said that it was put out by the BJP ‘in order to hide their own black (deeds)’. He also launched a scathing attack on the Centre saying it should look back at certain things like the value of the rupee in 2014 in comparison to the dollar, and the amount received by farmers for their produce. “This isn’t ‘white paper’ but to hide their own black they have brought this…” Congress MP Pramod Tiwari said.

“PM Modi himself praised the former PM Manmohan Singh as the biggest economist but his own govt is criticising him (Manmohan Singh)… What was the value of the rupee in comparison to the dollar in 2014? What was the percentage of inflation… How much farmers were getting for their produce? If everything is done in these 10 years then how come the previous 10 years stand better than these?… That govt (UPA) was running on realities but now it’s all jumlaa…” he added.

Pramod Tiwari’s statement came in response to the white paper presented by finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman in parliament on Thursday. The white paper listed out the achievements of the BJP-led government at the Centre in the past ten years. It claimed that the economy improved from 2014 to 2024 under the Modi government in comparison with the time period between 2004 and 2014 when the country was ruled by the UPA regime.

“It was a crisis situation. The responsibility to mend the economy step by step and to put the governance systems in order was enormous,” the white paper presented by the finance minister claimed. It said that during the UPA regime infrastructure was not a priority. But now “the wheels of the virtuous cycle of ‘investment, growth, employment and entrepreneurship leading to more investments and productivity has been set into fast motion,” it said.

During the Congress rule, India experienced double-digit inflation, whereas it has now been reduced to slightly over 5%, it said. The white paper stated that the NDA government effectively addressed the challenges inherited from the previous administration and remains vigilant and proactive, rather than complacent. “There are miles to go and mountains to scale before we sleep. The Amrit Kaal has just begun and our destination is ‘India a developed nation by 2047’. It is our Kartavya Kaal,” it said.