NEW DELHI, Oct 4: As the rupee hit a record low of Rs 73.77 against the US dollar on Thursday, Congress President Rahul Gandhi said the Indian currency is not breaking, but is “broken”.
The rupee plunged as global oil prices continued to rise, deepening concerns about the current account deficit and capital outflows.
“Breaking: Rupee slips to 73.77. It’s not breaking – it’s Broken,” Gandhi said on Twitter.
Senior Congress leader Anand Sharma said with the rupee constantly losing its value, it is the “worst performing” currency of Asia.
“It is a matter of shame. Prime Minister makes the claim and he is never tired of saying that the economy is doing well. But the Prime Minister, the Finance Minister in this government, they lack any vision or direction to revive the Indian economy and they have already taken the rupee to the ICU and also the Indian economy is moving in the same direction,” he told reporters.
Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said the rupee has crossed Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s age (68) and asked when it will cross the age of the ‘margdarshak mandal’, the BJP’s advisory body comprising of party veterans.
“The rupee has crossed Modi ji’s age and petrol has already crossed the age of the ‘margdarshak mandal’. When will diesel cross it? When will the rupee cross the age of the ‘margdarshak mandal?” he asked.
Gandhi had on Wednesday hit out at Modi, questioning his silence over the falling value of the rupee and spiralling fuel and gas prices.
Consistent dollar demand from importers, mainly oil refiners, following higher crude oil prices, have kept the rupee under pressure.
State-owned oil marketing companies have been allowed to raise USD 10 billion from overseas market to meet their working capital needs.
At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened lower and slipped further to a fresh low of 73.77 a dollar against 73.34 on Wednesday, a fall of 43 paise. (PTI)
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