NPAs of Indian banks is Congress' making: Modi
New Delhi, July 20 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday accused the Congress of creating a large mess of NPAs in Indian banks and said that from during UPA rule from 2008 to 2014 the "underground loot of banks" was such that the amount of NPAs increased from Rs 18 lakh crore to Rs 52 lakh crore.
He said the loans were given to select industrialists during the previous UPA rule.
"I want to tell you about the NPA problem. Much before internet banking, the Congress invented phone banking and this caused the NPA mess. A phone call would get loans for their cronies and the nation suffered," Modi said in his replyg to the debate on the no confidence motion in the Lok Sabha.
"Our government decided that the banks should come out into the open with NPAs, and we also took some decisions that would help the country in long run."
He said for sixty years after independence, Rs 18 lakh crore was the total bank loan but between 2008 to 2014, this increased to Rs 52 lakh crores.
"The underground loot of banks went on from 2009 to 2014. So long as Congress was in power, the game of looting the nation continued.
"How did it happen? Internet banking came much later. But Congress is so intelligent that even before internet banking, phone banking started in India. Through phone banking, they increased NPAs to 52 lakh crore from 18 lakh crore," said Modi.
"What was the method? Loans were given on telephone. Loans after loans were given on telephone," he added.
The Prime Minister also said: "We started mechanism to reduce NPAs. UPA government took such decisions due too which there was increase in import of capital goods. It was done by reducing custom duties. The financing of these imports was done through bank loans."
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UP court rejects plea seeking Rahul Gandhi's voice sample in defamation case
Sultanpur (UP) (PTI): A local MP/MLA court on Saturday rejected a plea seeking a voice sample of Rae Bareli MP Rahul Gandhi in a defamation case filed by a BJP functionary against the Congress leader, and posted the matter for next hearing on May 11.
The plea, filed by BJP leader Vijay Mishra through his counsel Santosh Kumar Pandey, had sought Gandhi's voice sample for a forensic test to compare it with an audio clip.
After the petition was dismissed, Pandey said they would file a revision plea before the sessions court against the order.
The court rejected the plea after hearing the arguments of both sides, including Gandhi's counsel Kashi Prasad Shukla.
The matter dates back to 2018 when Mishra, a local BJP leader, filed a defamation suit over Gandhi’s alleged objectionable remarks targeting Amit Shah while campaigning for the Karnataka Assembly elections.
After five years of legal proceedings, the court issued a warrant against Gandhi in December 2023.
The Rae Bareli MP surrendered before the court in February 2024, and was granted bail on two sureties of Rs 25,000 each by a special magistrate.
On July 26 last year, the Congress leader recorded his statement before the court, claiming innocence and calling the case a political conspiracy.
Earlier this year, multiple hearings were postponed due to a strike by lawyers and the ill-health of Gandhi’s counsel.
