India
‘I am not anti-business, I am anti-monopoly’: Rahul Gandhi after response | India News – Times of India
“I want to make something absolutely clear. My opponents in the BJP have projected me as anti-business. In any case, I am not against business. I am anti-monopoly. I am against the creation of oligopolies. I am against the domination of business by one, two, three or five people,” Rahul said in a post, reiterating that his comments are against concentrated power and not the business itself.
Rahul, drawing on his experience as a former management consultant, added: “I understand the kind of things it takes for a business to succeed. So I just want to reiterate: I’m not anti-business, I’m anti-monopoly.”
The BJP on Wednesday accused Rahul of spreading “baseless allegations” against Prime Minister Narendra Modi in response to an op-ed he wrote in The Indian Express, in which he compared modern monopolistic practices to the historical dominance of the East India Company.
“Another baseless allegation against the Modi government through the so-called ‘match-fixing monopoly groups versus fair-play companies’ is simply misleading,” the BJP wrote on X in response to Rahul Gandhi’s claims.
“Dear Baalak Buddhi, do not jump to conclusions without examining the facts,” the saffron party said in a veiled reference in Rahul.
The BJP further posted video clips of top executives of companies like Zomato, Haldiram, Tynor, Larsen & Toubro and Moglix, all companies that Rahul had mentioned in his article.
The BJP highlighted these executives’ praise for Modi’s economic policies and disputed Rahul’s claims.
Rahul Gandhi had expressed concern over the current economic landscape and compared it to the stranglehold the East India Company once exerted on India.
“The original East India Company ceased operations more than 150 years ago, but the raw fear it caused then is back now,” Rahul said.
He argued that today’s monopolists wield power not only in the corporate world but also within key national institutions, stifling competition and blocking growth for smaller businesses.