The Congress on Tuesday (October 13, 2026) criticised the Centre over the rise in inflation, saying the government that came to power promising “achche din” was not only “stealing votes” but also savings, and that it was time for Prime Minister Narendra Modi to pick up his “jhola” and leave.
Jairam Ramesh, the Congress general secretary in-charge of communications, said inflation kept rising and public outrage over “vote chori” kept growing, but the Prime Minister sat “like a mauni baba.” Food inflation rose to 7.74% in September from 5.97% the previous month, according to the National Statistics Office (NSO).
“Vote theft is the truth, back-breaking inflation is the reality. Headlines report that inflation reached 5.54% in September, but the real story is that food inflation has hit 7.74%, meaning the prices of almost every food item have crossed all limits. For instance, onions are up 108%, garlic 55%, ginger 63%, and lemons 36%,” Mr. Ramesh said in a post in Hindi on X.
According to government data, retail inflation had steadily risen from 3.40% in March 2026 to 5.54% in September 2026, marking the highest level in 23 months, he said. “The impact of inflation isn’t confined to just the dinner plate. Essentials like transportation, education, clothing-shoes, and household goods are all getting more expensive,” Mr. Ramesh said.
The poor were losing their daily bread from their plates, the middle class was seeing their savings vanish, and the burden of debt kept growing, but the Prime Minister was drowned in arrogance, paying no attention to people’s troubles, he alleged. “The government that came to power promising ‘achche din’ is not only stealing votes but also robbing savings,” he said.
“When a vote-stealing government has no fear of the people’s anger or losing votes, why would it care about the public? That’s exactly what’s happening now. Inflation keeps rising, public outrage over vote theft keeps growing, but the Prime Minister sits there like a mauni baba,” Mr. Ramesh said. “Ab unke liye jhola uthane ka waqt aa gaya hai [It is now time for him to pick up his bag and leave],” he added.
The top five items with the highest inflation were onion (108.09%), silver jewellery (87.8%), ginger (62.85%), garlic (54.62%) and lemon (36.41%). Consumer Price Index (CPI) rates for rural and urban areas were 6.08% and 4.88%, respectively, while the All India CPI, with base year 2024, for September was 5.54%. The September inflation numbers are the highest since the new series, with base year 2024, took effect in January 2026.
Last week, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) raised its benchmark repo rate by 25 basis points, to 5.50%, its first increase in nearly four years, while signalling that rate cuts were off the table in the near term and that further increases could follow amid rising inflation, a weak rupee and high crude oil prices.
It also marginally raised its forecast for retail inflation for the current fiscal year to 5.2%, from its earlier estimate of 5%, saying price pressures were increasingly becoming visible across a range of commodities.
The Congress had, on Monday (October 12, 2026), criticised the Modi government over the rise in prices during the festive season, saying “jumlebaaz” Prime Minister Modi must answer how long common people would have to endure this “economic catastrophe.”
The Opposition party had claimed inflation had spiralled out of control, and said it was the consequence of the failure of those who had promised ‘achche din’. The party has been flagging the issue of rising prices and accusing the government of following “anti-people” policies. The government, however, has dismissed the claims and pointed to GDP numbers.
Published – October 13, 2026 11:05 am IST
