India stuck with government in denial, PM who never speaks: BJP

New Delhi: The BJP today rejected the Prime Minister's first substantial statement on the current economic crisis and the crashing value of the rupee as "extremely disappointing and frustrating" and its top leaders met the President, requesting him to insist that the government call early national elections "to seek a fresh mandate." (Read)

In a memo to the President, the BJP said that the government "blames everyone for the current crisis except itself." It also alleged that India is current led by "a government which is paralysed, a Prime Minister who never speaks, a Finance Minister who wrongly blames his immediate predecessor."

In Parliament, its leaders' comments were equally acerbic. Arun Jaitley said in the Rajya Sabha that Manmohan Singh's track record as Prime Minister was of populist policies, not reform.

"If you continue to follow the course, then the legacy that you leave behind will not be the legacy that you left behind as the finance minister. That legacy was different," he said, provoking a sharp response from the Prime Minister who said, "Whatever some members of the House may say about me as the Prime Minister, I command certain status, certain prestige and certain respect in the Council of the Group of 20." (Watch unusually aggressive remarks by PM to BJP)

In his speech, the Prime Minister said that a weaker currency was the natural outcome of several years of high inflation. "To some extent, depreciation can be good for the economy as this will help to increase our export competitiveness and discourage imports," he said.

He promised his government would reduce the "unsustainably large" current account deficit undermining the currency.

"Clearly we need to reduce our appetite for gold, economise the use of petroleum products and take steps to increase our imports," he said.