New Delhi: Former Finance Minister and senior Congress leader P Chidambaram, who celebrated his 74th birthday in Tihar jail, on Monday mocked at the Modi government’s plan to achieve $5 trillion economy mark by 2024 saying no country has achieved the GDP growth of 8 per cent without exports growing at 20 per cent a year.
Chidambaram, also said that the greetings from friends, party colleagues and well wishers remind him that he is 74-years young.
Chidambaram, who has been lodged in Asia’s high security Tihar jail in connection with the INX media case, in a series of tweets said, “I have asked my family to tweet on my behalf the following: My family have brought me greetings from friends, party colleagues and well-wishers. I am reminded that I am 74-years-old. Indeed I am, but at heart I feel 74-years young. Thank you all, my spirits have been lifted higher.”
Slamming the government over its target of achieving $5 trillion economy by 2024, the former Finance Minister said, “My thoughts today are about the economy. Just one statistic tells the story. Export growth in August was — 6.05 per cent. No country has achieved GDP growth of 8 per cent without exports growing at 20 per cent a year.”
“May God bless this country,” he tweeted. His remarks came after India’s exports during August fell nearly 6.1 per cent to $ 26.13 billion, while GDP growth during April-June period fell to 5 per cent from 5.8 per cent in the preceding quarter.