‘India’s manufacturing is declining’: Rahul Gandhi’s remark in Germany sparks row
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi at the Berlin Airport with Indian Overseas Congress Chairperson Sam Pitroda and others Photograph: (X\@INCOverseas)
Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha and Member of Parliament Rahul Gandhi also praised Indian engineering once, when he said, “A highlight was seeing TVS’s 450cc motorcycle, developed in partnership with BMW. Good to see that the Indian flag is flying here.”
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who is visiting Germany, has waded into another controversy with his comment saying manufacturing is on the decline in India. After a visit to a plant of automobile manufacturer BMW in Munich, Gandhi posted a video on social media in which he is heard criticising the status of manufacturing in India. “Manufacturing is the backbone of strong economies. Sadly, in India, manufacturing is declining. For us to accelerate growth, we need to produce more—build meaningful manufacturing ecosystems and create high-quality jobs at scale,” he is heard saying in the video.
The remark criticising India from abroad has expectedly ruffled the feathers of the BJP and elicited a strong reaction.
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BJP rebuts claim of decline in manufacturing
BJP spokesperson Pradeep Bhandari called Gandhi’s claim of decline ‘fake news’.
In a post on social media platform X, Bhandari claimed 495 per cent growth in total electronics manufacturing in the last 10 years and a 760 per cent growth in exports.
Indigenous production of automobiles, he said, has gone up 14 times since 1991.
“Automobile Manufacturing (1991 vs 2024): Vehicle production 1991: 2 million units 2024: 28 million units +1,300 per cent increase (14x growth),” the X post added.
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The BJP spokesperson further added that India aims to produce 50 million vehicles by 2030 and to be among the top 2 auto manufacturers globally by 2047.
“What India is targeting next? 50 million vehicles by 2030, 200 million vehicles by 2047, and the Top-2 auto manufacturers globally. From import dependence to export dominance—this is manufacturing-led growth backed by data, not slogans. Rahul Gandhi may deny reality, but factories, exports, and numbers don’t lie. Under PM Modi, India’s growth story is real—and accelerating,” the BJP leader wrote.
‘Good to see that the Indian flag is flying here’
Gandhi, though, also praised Indian engineering once, when he said, “A highlight was seeing TVS’s 450cc motorcycle, developed in partnership with BMW. Good to see that the Indian flag is flying here.”
Rahul Gandhi’s comments about India and the current government during his foreign tours have been generating a lot of criticism at home.
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While sharing his experiences of Bharat Jodo Yatra during his visit to Cambridge in 2023, he had said that democracy in India is under attack.
“I am an opposition leader in India; we are navigating that (opposition) space. The institutional framework that is required for a democracy—Parliament, free press, the judiciary, just the idea of mobilisation, moving around—all are getting constrained. So, we are facing an attack on the basic structure of Indian democracy,” he had said.
