'Comes from arrogance or ignorance': SS (UBT) MP counters Rahul Gandhi's 'dead economy' dig 

New Delhi, July 31 Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi's endorsement of US President Donald Trump's "Indian economy is dead" remark has not gone well with the Shiv Sena(UBT), a key alliance partner of the Congress in Maharashtra, as well as the INDIA bloc.

Countering the Congress leader's sharp criticism of the government over handling of the Indian economy, SS (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi said on Thursday, "calling it a dead economy can only come from a position of arrogance or ignorance", a remark signifying the "fractured" ties within the INDIA bloc.

The sharp rebuttal to Rahul Gandhi's "dead economy" jibe by Priyanka Chaturvedi, a key Opposition voice, highlights the growing chasm between the alliance partners of Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) in Maharashtra - SS (UBT) and Congress, which have lately been growing sceptical of each other, over the coming together of the Thackeray brothers.

Moreover, the SS(UBT) lawmaker's praise for the Modi government over steering the economy forward has left political watchers perplexed.

Taking to the social media platform X, Priyanka Chaturvedi wrote, "There is enough legitimate data available to know that the Indian economy is in the top five of the world and one of the fastest growing economies."

She further said that the government has to address economic challenges, wealth inequalities and unemployment issues, but these hurdles don't equate to a dead economy.

Earlier in the day, the Gandhi scion, speaking to reporters outside the Parliament, backed the US President's remarks and repeated his claim that the Indian economy was dead, as there are no jobs and employment opportunities.

"He is right, everybody knows this except the Prime Minister and the Finance Minister. I am glad that President Trump has stated a fact," Rahul Gandhi told scribes, when asked on Trump's vague assessment of the Indian economy.

Taking potshots at Rahul Gandhi's backing of Donald Trump, where the latter said that 'India and Russia can take their dead economies down together', she called it a "Trump'ed up" (fabricated) statement.

Notably, Trump dropped a bombshell on Thursday as he mocked both India and Russia over business dealings and wrote on his Truth Social handle, "I don't care what India does with Russia. They can take their dead economies down together, for all I care. We have done very little business with India; their tariffs are too high, among the highest in the world. Likewise, Russia and the USA do almost no business together. Let's keep it that way."

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