I warned you before: Rahul Gandhi slams Centre over RBI report

New Delhi, Aug 26: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday took on the Centre over the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) latest warning on economic contraction amid the novel coronavirus pandemic, saying "distractions through media won't help the poor".

The Congress leader said the central bank has "now confirmed" what he has been talking about for months and suggested a few ways to restart the economy.

Taking to Twitter, Rahul Gandhi said, "RBI has now confirmed what I have been warning for months. Govt needs to: Spend more, not lend more. Give money to the poor, not tax cuts to industrialists. Restart economy by consumption. Distractions through media won't help the poor or make the economic disaster disappear."

On Tuesday, in its report, the central bank had said that the impact of the coronavirus pandemic could cause a structural downshift on India's potential output, with the gross domestic product (GDP) likely to contract in the second quarter as well.

RBI, which on previous occasions warned that the country's GDP is set to contract at least in the first half of the current year, said, unlike the 2008 financial crisis which was man-made, the recovery this time is likely to be different and path likely more gradual.

"The global crisis occurred after years of robust growth with macroeconomic stability; by contrast, Covid-19 has hit the economy after consecutive quarters of slowdown," RBI said.

Gandhi, the Wayanad MP, has been leading his party's attack on the Centre over a number of issues, including the handling of the coronavirus pandemic and the border standoff with China.

However, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), on its part, denied his accusations with senior leaders, including JP Nadda, taking on the Congress leader.