Under fire, Ravi Shankar Prasad withdraws remark using movie earnings to judge economy

Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad had sparked a political row while commenting on the economic slowdown during a press conference by saying that Indian economy is not facing any slowdown and this is the reason why three movies which released on October 2 earned Rs 120 crores.

Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Sunday withdrew his statement in which he had given the example of the earnings of three blockbuster movies to claim that there is no economic slowdown in the country.

"Entire video of my media interaction is available on my social media. Yet I regret to note that one part of my statement has been completely twisted out of context. Being a sensitive person I withdraw my comment," Prasad said in a press statement.

My comments made yesterday in Mumbai about 3 films making ₹120 Cr in a single day- the highest ever, was a factually correct statement. I had stated this as I was in Mumbai- the film capital of India. ...(1/4) pic.twitter.com/RL62YhjpZt — Ravi Shankar Prasad (@rsprasad) October 13, 2019

The law minister, however, added that his comments were factually correct and he made the statement as he was in Mumbai - which is home to Bollywood. "My comments made yesterday in Mumbai about 3 films making Rs 120 Cr in a single day- the highest ever, was a factually correct statement. I had stated this as I was in Mumbai- the film capital of India.

"We are very proud of our film industry which provides employment to Lakhs of people and contributes significantly by way of taxes. I had also explained in detail about various measures the Govt has taken as pro-people move to strengthen our economy. Govt of PM Narendra Modi always cares for the sensitivity of common people," noted Prasad.

On Saturday, the senior BJP leader had sparked a political row while commenting on the economic slowdown during a press conference by saying that Indian economy is not facing any slowdown and this is the reason why three movies which released on October 2 earned Rs 120 crores.

"On 2nd Oct, 3 movies were released. Film trade analyst Komal Nahta said that the day saw earning of over Rs 120 cr, a record by 3 movies.Economy of country is sound, that's why there's a return of Rs 120cr in a day," Prasad had said.

#WATCH Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad in Mumbai: On 2nd October, 3 movies were released. Film trade analyst Komal Nahta told that the day saw earning of over Rs 120 crores, a record by 3 movies. Economy of country is sound, that is why there is a return of Rs 120 cr in a day. pic.twitter.com/fHpTqZJg4w — ANI (@ANI) October 12, 2019

Congress and other opposition parties had slammed the Union Minister for his claim with Congress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate asking Prasad if people should go watch movies when they are unsure about their future. "Reserve my comments on this ill-informed view but this is insensitive. People are losing jobs, factories are shutting down, growth is dwindling and here we are referring to movie collections. People's future is at stake but maybe they should just go watch a movie Sir?" Supriya Shrinate tweeted.

It is to be noted that the GDP growth of India has touched a six-year low of 5 per cent for the June quarter. Reserve Bank of India recently lowered the expected GDP growth down to 6.1 per cent in FY20 from the earlier forecast of 6.8 per cent.