‘Will bridge gap with China’: Sitharaman cites Elon Musk's post on India's global GDP role forecast

FInance government minister Nirmala Sitharaman on dominicus cited billionaire Elon Musk's remarks on a planetary statistics cover that ranked bharat second in terms of a forecast on contribution to global real GDP (gross domestic product) in 2026. The finance minister said that New Delhi "will bridge" the gap with China, which stood at the first rank on the list reshared by the Tesla CEO in an X post.On January 31, the Tesla CEO had reshared a post by 'World of Statistics' (@stats_feed) that ranked the top 10 contributors to global real GDP growth (2026). The post, which cited the IMF (International Monetary Fund) as its data source, ranked India second with 17 per cent and China first with 26.6 per cent. Musk reposted with a caption, "The balance of power is changing."Meanwhile, other countries like the United States, Indonesia, Nigeria, Brazil, and Saudi Arabia were placed at lower ranks at 9.9 per cent, 3.8 per cent, 1.5 per cent, and 1.7 per cent, respectively.The statistics report also noted that China and India alone account for 43.6 per cent of the global growth.At the Youth Dialogue on Union Budget 2026-27, Sitharaman said, "...Elon Musk takes the IMF data to say "wow, is this true". I don't remember if he exactly said 'wow'...China contributes 26% of the growth in global GDP. India contributes 17%. Together, 43% of global GDP growth comes from these two economies."She took the chance to hit out at the Opposition for its remark after the presentation of the Budget, saying that "India's opposition should also understand that this is the kind of strength that India has acquired now".WATCH: Noting that India is next to China, she said "the gap may be big, 26 and 17, but we'll bridge it". Sitharaman further said, "But we should have the confidence that, together with a big economy, which is just next door, we contribute 43% of global GDP growth."The IMF raised India's growth projection to 7.3 per cent for FY 2025-26 in January, and placed the country's GDP growth forecast at 6.4 per cent for FY 2026-27. Union minister Kiren Rijiju also referred to Elon Musk's post to hit back at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, urging him not to "disparage" the nation while criticising the government.Rijiju said he was citing Musk only to make a wider point on national achievement. “I normally do not react to statements which are not made by Indians. I'm quoting @elonmusk only to sensitise Rahul Gandhi ji that, while criticizing the govt is a democratic right, do not disparage India & never belittle India's achievement. Be a proud Indian,” he posted.The Union minister's comments came against the backdrop of Rahul Gandhi's jibes at this year's Budget and his consistent criticism of the BJP-led central government's handling of the economy.