NEW DLEHI: PM Narendra Modi on Wednesday said his govt nursed public sector companies back to health after the UPA had left them in shambles and their value in the stock market is soaring despite “falsehoods” being spread by Congress and its “commandos”.
“Congress said that we sold PSUs, destroyed them. Remember who destroyed BSNL and MTNL? What was that period when they were destroyed? Remember what was the state of affairs at HAL? People, who destroyed HAL, used to sit outside its gate and prepare the agenda for 2019 elections.Who destroyed Air India, who brought it to that state? Congress party and UPA. They can’t shy away from the 10 years when you were in power. The country fully knows that,” Modi said while replying to the motion of thanks to the President’s address in Rajya Sabha.
He also accused Congress and other opposition parties of spreading rumours about LIC, in what was a reference to the fall in the public sector insurer’s share price after the Hindenburg report on Adani group. Opposition had attacked LIC and State Bank of India on their loan exposure to the conglomerate, resulting in their market value also taking a beating.
A year down the line, LIC’s shares have crossed Rs 1,000 mark for the first time. “There were statements made on LIC. Whatever could be spoken about LIC was spoken – that is the modus operandi, spread as many rumours as possible. In villages when people want to buy a bungalow, which is beyond their reach, they spread rumours that it’s haunted. When nobody buys it, they jump in to buy,” the PM said.
Contrasting the state of PSUs, Modi said that BSNL is moving towards launching 4G and 5G services, while HAL is generating record profits and now has Asia’s largest helicopter making factory.
He also accused the opposition of spreading lies about closure of PSUs, saying the number has increased from 234 in 2014 to 254 now. The Modi administration has often been attacked for closure of PSUs.
Besides, he said that their performance has improved, arguing that the cumulative net profit of the govt-owned entities had doubled to Rs 2.5 lakh crore in 10 years. During this period, their net worth had also increased from Rs 9.5 lakh crore to Rs 17 lakh crore, he said.
“Congress said that we sold PSUs, destroyed them. Remember who destroyed BSNL and MTNL? What was that period when they were destroyed? Remember what was the state of affairs at HAL? People, who destroyed HAL, used to sit outside its gate and prepare the agenda for 2019 elections.Who destroyed Air India, who brought it to that state? Congress party and UPA. They can’t shy away from the 10 years when you were in power. The country fully knows that,” Modi said while replying to the motion of thanks to the President’s address in Rajya Sabha.
He also accused Congress and other opposition parties of spreading rumours about LIC, in what was a reference to the fall in the public sector insurer’s share price after the Hindenburg report on Adani group. Opposition had attacked LIC and State Bank of India on their loan exposure to the conglomerate, resulting in their market value also taking a beating.
A year down the line, LIC’s shares have crossed Rs 1,000 mark for the first time. “There were statements made on LIC. Whatever could be spoken about LIC was spoken – that is the modus operandi, spread as many rumours as possible. In villages when people want to buy a bungalow, which is beyond their reach, they spread rumours that it’s haunted. When nobody buys it, they jump in to buy,” the PM said.
Contrasting the state of PSUs, Modi said that BSNL is moving towards launching 4G and 5G services, while HAL is generating record profits and now has Asia’s largest helicopter making factory.
He also accused the opposition of spreading lies about closure of PSUs, saying the number has increased from 234 in 2014 to 254 now. The Modi administration has often been attacked for closure of PSUs.
Besides, he said that their performance has improved, arguing that the cumulative net profit of the govt-owned entities had doubled to Rs 2.5 lakh crore in 10 years. During this period, their net worth had also increased from Rs 9.5 lakh crore to Rs 17 lakh crore, he said.
