Subramanian Swamy issues first response on FM Sitharaman's 'Act of God' statement

BJP MP Subramanian Swamy on Friday questioned Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman for her statement pertaining to COVID-19 and the ensuing economic slump in the country. Sitharaman on Thursday termed the COVID-19 pandemic as 'Act of God'. Moreover, the Finance Minister also stated that the economy is headed for a contraction in the current fiscal.

READ: COVID-19 An 'Act Of God', Economy To Contract This Fiscal: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman

Subramanian Swamy questions Sitharaman for 'Act of God' statement

The senior BJP leader lashed out at Nirmala Sitharaman and said that he will post the video of her statement soon. In addition, he also questioned whether the decline in annual growth rate from 8 per cent in 2015 to 3.1 per cent in the first quarter of 2020 before the pandemic should be attributed as an act of god as well. 

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Meanwhile, opposition leaders have also hit out at Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman for her statement. Shiv Sena leader and Rajya Sabha MP Priyanka Chaturvedi in her tweets questioned Sitharaman over the economic situation before the COVID-19 outbreak. She termed the deteriorating economic situation as 'Act of Fraud'.

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COVID-19 An 'Act Of God': Nirmala Sitharaman

During the 41st meeting of the GST Council, Sitharaman in her briefing to the media said that the Centre will pay the states the compensation which strictly arises out of GST implementation. The compensation expected by the states has been estimated at Rs 3 lakh crore, of which Rs 65,000 crore would be funded from the revenues garnered by levy of cess. In addition, the Centre has also estimated that of this Rs 2.35 lakh crore, Rs 97,000 crore compensation requirement is due to GST rollout and the remaining is on account of the impact of COVID-19 on the economy.

"This year we are facing an extraordinary situation that even below 10 per cent approximate estimation you are facing an 'Act of God' which might even result in a contraction of the economy...," Sitharaman said.

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(With PTI Inputs)