Harpal Singh Cheema Criticises BJP Over India’s Economic Slowdown
Harpal Singh Cheema criticised the BJP-led Central Government over inflation, unemployment, and economic slowdown, questioning its handling of India’s economy and RBI policies.
CHANDIGARH; 27th May, 2026: Punjab Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema on Wednesday said the Indian economy was steadily weakening under the BJP-led Central Government, adding that twelve years of BJP rule had left the country facing economic slowdown, rising debt, inflation, unemployment, and declining investor confidence.
In a statement issued, Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema said the BJP Government had promised to make India a “Vishwaguru”, but the country was now lagging behind even smaller economies on key economic indicators. He stated, “Taiwan’s market capitalisation has now crossed that of India. A country of barely 2.5 crore people has overtaken a nation of 130 crore people. India, once the world’s 4th largest economy by GDP size, has now slipped to 6th position.”
He remarked that a country much smaller than India in both geography and population had managed to move ahead while the BJP Government continued to avoid accountability on economic issues. “They wanted to make India a Vishwaguru, but today even a country smaller than Japan and with a population of barely 2.5 crore has moved ahead of us. Modi ji must now explain how he plans to handle the country’s economy,” Minister Harpal Singh Cheema stated.
The Finance Minister further questioned the Centre over the recent decision involving the Reserve Bank of India’s risk buffer, saying it exposed the BJP Government’s desperation to manage its Budget through temporary measures rather than long-term economic strengthening. Referring to reports regarding RBI reducing its Contingent Risk Buffer from 7.5% to 6.5% before transferring a record dividend to the Centre, Harpal Singh Cheema said such decisions could weaken the country’s financial resilience.
“We had highlighted this earlier when the RBI gave a ‘record’ dividend to the Government of India. Such transfers cannot come at the cost of the risk-management capacity of India’s most important financial institution. This Government is obsessed with balancing its Budget even if it means higher fuel prices, rising inflation, and weakening RBI’s resilience,” Minister Harpal Singh Cheema stated.
