Lucknow: Launching a scathing attack on the Congress, which is celebrating the first anniversary of demonetisation as a 'black day' today, Union minister Smriti Irani said that the note ban decision was "definitely a tragedy for the Gandhi family".  

She was apparently referring to an article by Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi in the 'Financial Times' in which he termed demonetisation as a "tragedy".  "I think that demonetisation is definitely a tragedy for the Gandhi family which is now synonymous with the word corruption," Irani alleged.  

The information and broadcasting minister was addressing a press conference at the UP BJP headquarters here. "It is definitely a tragedy for the gentleman who had wanted to withdraw Rs 4,000 just for show, and then took hiatuses in overseas destinations unknown to many Indians," she said in an apparent jibe at Rahul Gandhi.  

The Union minister claimed that demonetisation was definitely a tragedy for "Mr Gandhi" as election after election had been lost under his leadership. Continuing her tirade, she said the Congress was saying that Rahul Gandhi will be the president of the party soon but changed its tune after surveys and polls by TV channels suggested that losses in Gujarat and Himachal polls were imminent.  

"So, yes personally Mr Gandhi must be facing a lot of trouble internally and that is why he ....(is) shooting from the shoulder of the prime minister," she said. 

Irani's comments came against the backdrop of the Congress vice president accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi of "robbing" the country of its economic prowess and "damaging" India by converting people's anger due to joblessness into "communal hatred". 

In his article in the 'Financial Times' on the first anniversary of demonetisation, which he termed as a "tragedy", Gandhi said the livelihood of millions of honest Indians were destroyed due to this "thoughtless act" of the prime minister.  

"Modi's reforms have robbed India of its economic prowess," he alleged, adding that demonetisation had wiped out 2 per cent of GDP and "ruined" the lives of millions of workers. PTI