There was not a word against RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan: Arun Jaitley

NEW DELHI: Finance Minister Arun Jaitley today sought to dispel the impression that he had taken on RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan on interest rate saying he had only suggested steps to boost India's manufacturing capabilities.

Referring to media reports of his speech yesterday purportedly critical of Rajan, he said in a Facebook post, "there was not a single sentence reference (not even a word) in my entire speech (at the Make In India workshop yesterday) on either the Reserve Bank or its Governor".

"What is reported is a speech that I did not deliver. The reports indicated that I had spoken on the Reserve Bank, its Governor and voiced differences with them," he said.

Yesterday Jaitley had stated that high cost of capital was "singular factor which has contributed to slowdown of manufacturing growth itself."

In the Facebook post headlined 'Reporting with an Agenda', Jaitley said: "One of the many points that I made was that the cost of capital has to be cut down. Any one speaking on the subject of 'Make in India' into a manufacturing hub would necessarily suggest this.

"The report of this speech in several sections of the Media convinces me that in the competitive world of journalism, reporters are always looking for an 'angle'. Where none exists, the speech itself can be twisted to create one."