Opposition leaders have lashed out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi in no uncertain terms after he issued a series of ‘appeals’ for citizens. The PM had invoked the COVID-19 pandemic and consequent lockdown on Sunday as he urged people to work from home, avoid international travel and stop purchasing gold. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has since dubbed the remarks as “proof of failure” while others, including SP chief Akhilesh Yadav, questioned the timing mere days after the Assembly elections.
“Modi ji demanded sacrifices from the public yesterday – don’t buy gold, don’t go abroad, use less petrol, cut down on fertilizer and cooking oil, take the metro, work from home. These aren’t sermons – these are proofs of failure,” Gandhi asserted.
The Leader of Opposition accused the PM of “shifting responsibility” while highlighting the appeals issued by Modi on Sunday.
“In 12 years, he’s brought the country to such a pass that the public has to be told what to buy, what not to buy, where to go, where not to go. Every time, they shift the responsibility onto the people so they can escape accountability themselves. Running the country is no longer within the reach of a Compromised PM,” Gandhi wrote on X.
नरेंद्र मोदी ने एक बार फिर अपनी जिम्मेदारी से पल्ला झाड़ लिया है।
देश आर्थिक संकट से गुजर रहा है। वहीं, आने वाला वक्त और कठिन होगा।
चुनाव की वजह से मोदी ने समय रहते जरूरी कदम नहीं उठाए। अब चुनाव बाद सारी जिम्मेदारी जनता पर थोप कर खुद मजे कर रहे हैं।
• पेट्रोल डीजल मत खरीदो
•…
— Congress (@INCIndia) May 11, 2026
What had Modi said?
“During the COVID-19 period, we developed many systems of work from home, online meetings, and video conferences, and we even became accustomed to them. Today, the demands of the times are such that if we restart these systems, it will be in the national interest. We must prioritise work from home, online conferences, and virtual meetings again,” PM Modi said during an event in Telangana.
- Prioritise work from home wherever possible
- Avoid buying gold for one year
- Avoid foreign travel for one year
- Reduce petrol and diesel consumption; use metro or public transport
- Cut down the use of cooking oil
- Reduce dependence on chemical fertilisers and move towards natural farming
- Use fewer foreign products and adopt Swadeshi
‘Crisis came to mind after elections’: Akhilesh Yadav
Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav also took a sharp swipe at the BJP over the seven-point appeal to citizens — calling it an “admission of failure” by the government and questioning its timing days after multi-state elections. He also warned that such a warning would only spread fear and chaos among citizens. Yadav said the comments made by the PM would spark “panic, unease, and despair in trade, business, and the markets due to apprehensions of recession or inflation”.
“As soon as the elections ended, the ‘crisis’ came to mind! In fact, there’s only one ‘crisis’ for the country, and its name is: ‘BJP’. If so many restrictions had to be imposed, how will the ‘jumla economy of five trillion dollars’ ever come about? It seems the reins have completely slipped from the hands of the BJP government. The dollar is touching the skies, and the country’s rupee is hurtling toward the depths,” Yadav jibed on Monday.
He also questioned the BJP election campaign to underscore his point. Yadav also countered Modi’s call for people to stop purchasing gold and insisted that the appeal should be directed at “their own corrupt people” rather than ordinary citizens.
“Why did all these restrictions only come to mind after the elections? Weren’t the thousands of charter flights the BJP folks took during the elections flying on water? Weren’t they staying in hotels, or cooking meals with photos of cylinders? Why didn’t the BJP do their election campaigning just through video conferencing? Are all these restrictions only for the public?” he fumed in a lengthy X post.
‘Double standards’
Opposition leaders have also alleged double standards in the government approach and criticised the Prime Minister’s public events and foreign visits.
“But Modi ji will bring lakhs of people to his rallies in droves, go on foreign trips, burn plenty of fuel; his people won’t just buy gold–they’ll snap up the entire nation’s wealth–but you keep playing the fool. And yes, if you can’t stomach Modi ji’s inflation, the blind devotees and lapdog media will declare you a Pakistani,” jibed AAP leader Sanjay Singh.
“What kind of Prime Minister is he who is saying that less fertilisers should be used…He tells us to use less petrol in the morning and then holds a roadshow in Jamnagar with 100 cars…We are not getting oil and gas because of creating a distance from Iran and Russia,” said Congress Spokesperson Atul Londhe Patil.
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