Cong seeks probe into purchase of ex-economic adviser’s book

Congress leader Supriya Shrinate on Tuesday demanded an investigation into the purchase of two lakh copies of a book “India @100: Envisioning Tomorrow’s Economic Powerhouse” by Union Bank of India, at a cost of Rs 7.25 crore.

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The book has been written by KV Subramanian, a former Chief Economic Adviser to the government, whose tenure as the Executive Director at the IMF was recently cut short.

“Subramanian was removed from his post at the IMF six months ahead of the completion of his three-year tenure. The government is yet to come out with an authorised version as to why he was removed,” Shrinate said.

Taking a jibe at Subramanian, she said, “He was the same person who repeatedly praised PM Narendra Modi and his policies, while maligning previous governments. He seemed to be more interested in becoming a cheerleader for the government than serving as an economic adviser.”

The Congress leader claimed that the regional and zonal offices that were assigned the task of promoting the sale of books were asked to show the expenses under the miscellaneous category. She further questioned if Union Bank of India had taken approval from its Board of Directors for such a massive purchase.

She also demanded a reply from Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman over the matter.