PM's statement extremely disappointing: BJP

The country is facing a crisis of credibility and that credibility gap will not be bridged by this statement, says BJP

BJP today termed Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's statement on the state of the economy as 'extremely disappointing and frustrating' and accused him of 'insulting' the opposition and Lok Sabha by not waiting to listen to the Leader of the Opposition.

'It is the most disappointing, frustrating statement that the Prime Minister has chosen to give,' BJP leader Yashwant Sinha told reporters outside Parliament House.

'The country is facing a crisis of credibility. And that credibility gap will not be bridged by this statement,' he said.

Sinha charged the Prime Minister with not extending the courtesy of listening to the Leader of the Opposition Sushma Swaraj.

'The Prime Minister left in a manner as it we were all idle people sitting in Lok Sabha. We believe that he has insulted the opposition and the House the way in which he left the House after finishing his speech. He did not extend courtesy to the Leader of the Opposition who stood up to speak,' he said.

Sinha said that Swaraj probably wanted to say that there should be a structured discussion on the issue in Parliament.

'That is why the Leader of Opposition got up and said that we are hurt by this attitude of the Prime Minister and that is why we are boycotting Parliament,' he added.

Sinha said there was nothing new in Singh's speech and the government has been consistently trying to save itself by deflecting blame.

'Even today, if one sees the common element in Prime Minister's statement, it is that there is a global crisis and we are also affected by it,' he said.

Only yesterday, there was a statement by the RBI governor that the current account deficit gradually kept climbing but the steps that the government should have taken were not taken, and as a result of which the current crisis has emerged, he said, adding that the Prime Minister glossed over this issue.