"Leader of propaganda": BJP's Shehzad Poonawalla slams Rahul Gandhi's "dead economy" remarks as India becomes 4th largest economy

New Delhi [India], December 31 (ANI): BJP National Spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla took a swipe at Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, on Wednesday, alleging "propaganda against India" after India became the fourth-largest economy, surpassing Japan.
Speaking to ANI, Poonawalla slammed Rahul Gandhi for his "dead economy" remark and asked him not to spread "malicious propaganda."
Poonawalla said, "Rahul Gandhi, who is an expert at making anti-India statements, goes to Berlin and spreads malicious propaganda against India, sometimes against the army, sometimes against constitutional institutions, against Sanatan and economic power, has now faced reality today. Rahul Gandhi used to say that India's economy is dead, India's economy and production are dead; this is a leader of propaganda, not a leader of opposition."
"India's economy has now reached the fourth position, while in Manmohan Singh's era, it was at the 11th position. Today, we have overtaken Japan. In the next two and a half to three years, we will become the third-largest economy. He should stop defaming India and spreading malicious propaganda against India," he added.
Earlier in July 2025, Rahul Gandhi had reiterated US President Donald Trump's "dead economy" remark, stating, "Yes, he is right, everybody knows this except the Prime Minister and the Finance Minister. Everybody knows that the Indian economy is a dead economy. I am glad that President Trump has stated a fact. The entire world knows that the Indian economy is a dead economy."
A press release from the Centre stated that, with a GDP exceeding USD 4.18 trillion, India is now the world's fourth-largest economy and is projected to rise further in global rankings in the coming years.
India's real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) expanded at 8.2 per cent in the second quarter of the financial year (FY) 2025-26, marking a six-quarter high and underscoring resilient domestic demand amidst a challenging global trade environment. This follows growth rates of 7.8 per cent in the first quarter and 7.4 per cent in the fourth quarter of FY 2024-25, the press release said.
Meanwhile, Congress leader Rashid Alvi alleged a flaw in the GDP calculation method, stating that the Indian government uses a consumer-based approach rather than the production-based approach used worldwide.
"It is completely wrong and baseless. Even today, the GDP data that is provided shows that we are the fourth or fifth largest economy in the world. The government has completely changed the way GDP is calculated. GDP is calculated worldwide on a production basis, but they have switched to a consumer basis," Alvi said.
Alvi's remarks come as the IMF's annual review of India's national accounts statistics gave the data a Grade 'C', which the Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said was assigned because the data is based on an outdated base year, 2011-12, and the new base year will be 2022-23 from next year. (ANI)