'You can find Pappu in West Bengal': Sitharaman hits back at TMC's Mahua Moitra

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday hit back at TMC MP Mahua Moitra for her 'Pappu' attack against the government in Lok Sabha. 

On Tuesday, Moitra targeted the central government for the economic situation and the BJP's loss in Himachal Pradesh, the home state of party chief JP Nadda. 

"Who is Pappu now," she had repeatedly asked while citing the election loss, inflation numbers, and economic growth. Moitra also said that the question was not who started the fire but who gave the "madman" the "maachis". 

Today, Sitharaman while speaking in the Lower House said 'Pappu' can be found in West Bengal and the 'maachis' of people's mandate given to TMC led to arson and loot in the state after the election victory. She was referring to large-scale violence that had erupted in West Bengal soon after the election result was announced on May 2.  

Sitharaman sought to highlight the difference in the post-result situation in West Bengal and Gujarat, which the saffron party won for a record 7th term with a historic majority. She said Gujarat was peaceful but there was "arson, looting, rape and burning of houses of our party workers" after the Trinamool Congress won the West Bengal election in 2021. 

"Loktantra mein janata sarkar ke haath mein maachis dethi hain. Isliye, prashan yeh nahi hona chahiye ki haath mein maachis kisne di, asli prashan to yeh hai ki maachis ka upayog kis prakar kiya gaya (In democracy, people give matchsticks in the hands of the government. So the question should not be that who gave the matchsticks but how the matchsticks were used)," the minister said. 

The finance minister further said that when people gave the matchstick to the BJP it gave free cooking gas, electricity connections, Rs 6,000 cash to farmers. But when the TMC got the 'maachis', there was arsoning, loot, rapes, and burning of houses of BJP workers, she said. "Jaab apke haath main aaya maachis, arson hua, looting hua, rape hua, hamare karyakarta ka ghar jalaya," Sitharaman said

On Tuesday, Moitra said the central government was spreading falsehood about the economic growth and the country’s industrial output had shrunk by 4 per cent in October to a 26-month low and the manufacturing sector had contracted to 5.6 per cent. She also said that seventeen of the industry sectors that make up the Index of Industrial Production have recorded negative growth rates. 

The TMC MP took a dig at the BJP, saying the ruling party’s president could not hold on to his home state Himachal. "Who is the Pappu now?" she asked.

Responding to her, Sitharaman today said that there is a question - who is the Pappu?, where is the Pappu? "Actually, if only the honourable member looks back into her own backward, she will find Pappu in West Bengal. So there is no doubt... when there are wonderful schemes which can benefit common people, West Bengal sits over it and doesn't (implement) them... you don't need to search anywhere else for Pappu," the minister said.

With inputs from PTI