PM Modi has decided to make the rupee hit a century against the dollar: Congress

Congress leader Supriya Shrinate addresses a press conference at AICC HQ in New Delhi. FIle
| Photo Credit: Shashi Shekhar Kashyap

Targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the falling value of the rupee against the U.S. dollar, the Congress on Friday (January 24, 2025) said the currency has fallen by 50% over the past decade.

The Prime Minister has “made up his mind to make it hit a century”, Congress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate said, repeatedly taking potshots at Mr. Modi during a press conference at party headquarters.

Wielding a magnifying glass, Ms. Shrinate claimed she had lost track of how steeply the rupee has fallen and with it, the Prime Minister’s dignity. “It was Mr. Modi who [once] said that along with the falling rupee, the Prime Minister’s dignity and his office’s grace also fall. I wonder what Prime Minister Modi has to say now,” she said.

50% fall over 10 years

“The rupee today is staring at 87 to a dollar, while he was handed over the rupee at 58 to a dollar when he became the Prime Minister. The rupee has fallen by 29 against the dollar, which is a fall of 50% in the last 10 years. It looks like he has made up his mind to make it hit a century,” Ms. Shrinate added.

The Congress spokesperson asked the Centre whether it has a plan to resurrect the rupee and for how long precious forex reserves are going to be spent to control and strengthen the rupee.

“Today, the rupee is playing hide and seek with 87. It seems that the rupee is running away and Prime Minister Modi is shouting slogans from behind – ab ki baar 60 paar, 65 paar, 70 paar, 75 paar, 80 paar, 85 paar‘…. Now, we will make 87 paar also. Narendra Modi has decided that he will ensure that he reaches a century of rupees,” the Congress leader said.

“If Narendra Modi is asked about the falling rupee, he can blame [first Prime Minister Jawaharlal] Nehruji for it,” she said, adding that the Congress handed over the rupee to Mr. Modi at ₹58.4 to a dollar. “Mr. Modi has contributed 34% to the fall of the rupee so far and during his 10-year tenure, the value of the rupee has fallen by 50%,” Ms. Shrinate added.

Forex reserves

The Congress spokesperson also pointed out that India’s foreign exchange reserve has reached its lowest level in 10 months: from $704 billion on September 27, 2024 to $635 billion on January 10, 2025.

“For how long are we going to spend our precious forex reserves to control and strengthen the rupee, something the Modi government is not able to do? Does it realise once and for all that a falling rupee contributes to a high inflation and does it have any plan to bring respite to the common people of this country?” she asked.

Depreciation timeline

The Congress spokesperson recounted the timeline of the rupee’s fall during the tenures of various Prime Ministers beginning with Nehru.

Ms. Shrinate claimed that when the British left the country, the value of one US dollar was ₹3.31 and that the rupee fell by 2% in 17 years under Nehru. “There was no decline in the value of the rupee during Lal Bahadur Shastri’s government. When Indira Gandhi became the Prime Minister for the first time, her contribution to the fall of the rupee was 5%. The rupee depreciated by 5% during Indiraji’s second tenure too. It depreciated by 6% during Rajiv Gandhi’s tenure. The rupee fell by 6% during the one-year tenure of V.P. Singhji,” she said.

P.V. Narasimha Rao found the economy in a bad shape and had to bring in major reforms in 1991. During his rule, the rupee depreciated by 17%, she added. “Atalji took the rupee past 45 in six years and his contribution to the total decline is approximately 11%. Dr. Manmohan Singh got the rupee at 45 in 2004 and in 2007, he had strengthened the rupee and taken it to 41.

“During the global financial crisis and economic depression of 2008, the Indian rupee fell to only 48. In 2012, when the taper tantrum happened and the emerging market currencies started falling, the rupee fell from 58 to around 69. But within four months, the Congress government brought the rupee back from 69 to 58,” she said.