Narendra Modi’s appeal to Indians to adopt austerity measures and conserve fuel was evidence of the government’s failure, the Opposition said on Monday, prompting a counter-attack by the BJP even as “practise what you preach” barbs flew over the prime minister’s road shows amid his telling the people to work from home.

Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi declared that the “compromised PM” was no longer capable of running the country.

“Yesterday, Modi Ji called upon the public to make sacrifices -- do not buy gold, do not travel abroad, consume less petrol, cut down on fertilisers and cooking oil, take the metro and work from home," Rahul Gandhi wrote in Hindi on X (formerly Twitter).

"These are not words of counsel; they are evidence of failure," he said.

“In 12 years, he's brought the country to such a pass that the public has to be told what to buy, what not to buy, where to go, where not to go. Every time, they shift the responsibility onto the people so they can escape accountability themselves. Running the country is no longer within the reach of a compromised PM.”

Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said the prime minister’s unexpected appeal from Hyderabad showed that “the economic situation is far more serious than suggested by official figures and the claims made so far by the prime minister and his colleagues.”

He said: “A phase of stringent cost-cutting measures, including a hike in fuel prices, may be on the horizon, and an atmosphere is being created to make them more acceptable.

“It has been clear for a long time that the economic conditions on the ground — which are evident in situations such as stagnation in real wages, rising household debt, and a lack of momentum in private investment that generates employment — are completely at odds with the Modi government's propaganda,” he said.

“The time for reckoning has now arrived.”

SP chief Akhilesh Yadav also called PM Modi’s appeal an "admission of failure".

"As soon as elections are over, the government suddenly remembered the 'crisis'. In reality, there is only one crisis for the country and its name is BJP," Yadav wrote on X.

The former Uttar Pradesh chief minister questioned how the country would achieve the goal of becoming a $5-trillion economy if the government was forced to impose several restrictions.

"It appears the BJP government has completely lost control," he added. "The dollar is touching the sky while the Indian rupee is sinking deeper.

"An appeal not to buy gold should be made to corrupt BJP leaders, not to the public, because ordinary people are anyway unable to buy even a small quantity of gold," he said.

He alleged that BJP leaders were engaged in converting "black money into gold", adding: "If anyone doubts this, they should enquire from Lucknow to Gorakhpur or from Ahmedabad to Guwahati."

Yadav also questioned why such appeals and restrictions surfaced only after the elections.

"During the elections, BJP leaders took thousands of chartered flights. Were those planes flying on water? Were they not staying in hotels? Why did they not campaign entirely through video conferencing if savings were so important?" he asked.

He alleged that the restrictions and appeals were meant only for the common people while those in power continued to enjoy privileges.

"This kind of appeal will spread fear, anxiety, restlessness and disappointment in trade, business and markets due to apprehensions of recession and inflation," he said.

"The government's job is to utilise its vast resources to help the country overcome emergency situations, not to create fear and chaos," he added.

Yadav said if the government was unable to govern effectively, it should "accept its failure instead of ruining the country".

"The real reason behind these conditions is the BJP government abandoning the country's traditional policy of non-alignment and aligning itself with certain groups due to specific pressures and interests," he said.

"Farmers, labourers, youth, homemakers, salaried employees, professionals and traders -- everyone has been affected.”

"Votes were secured, and now the BJP's flaws are becoming visible," he said.

NCP (SP) national spokesperson Clyde Crasto said that the BJP should follow PM Modi's appeals before preaching to citizens.

In a statement, Crasto questioned whether the BJP governments and leaders would now prioritise work from home, reduce fuel consumption by cutting down on large convoys and using public transport, adopt "swadeshi" by giving up foreign-branded products, and refrain from foreign travel for a year.

"BJP must lead by example and practise what they preach," he said.

"If the BJP does not, then it will be just another act of 'playing to the galleries'," he added.

BJP hits back at Rahul Gandhi

The BJP hit back at Rahul Gandhi for his “compromised PM” jab.

The party’s IT department head Amit Malviya said Modi has not asked people to make sacrifices but urged them to make conscious choices in the national interest.

"But this is precisely the Congress party's problem. Any call for public participation in the national interest sounds like 'preaching' to them, because their politics has remained confined to power, not nation-building," he said.

"If appealing to the public to fulfil its responsibility is considered a 'failure', then was your beloved Nehru also a 'compromised PM'? Nehru himself had said that when wars break out in other countries, their impact is felt in India in the form of inflation. Was that also an 'excuse' then, or was it considered responsible leadership at the time?" Malviya said.

He also shared an old purported video of Nehru in which the first prime minister of India can be heard saying that the country is impacted when wars take place in countries such as Korea or America.

Barbs at Modi

Meanwhile, many on social media pointed to the prime minister’s routine amid his appeal to people to adopt austerity measures.

“If you’re worried that markets are crashing, crisis is looming, and the PM has already advised us not to buy gold, scrap foreign holidays, work from home and save fuel for a year — relax.

After a mega roadshow in Jamnagar with a convoy big enough to cause its own traffic advisory, Modi ji is right now in Somnath praying for all of us. Not for jobs, growth or purchasing power — but for us to finally get some sense to understand that austerity is only for us,ordinary Indians,” Gujarat-based journalist Deepal Trivedi wrote on social media.

“Because clearly, the “save fuel” rule does not apply to the fleet of helicopters, chartered aircraft, SPG convoys and 50 plus-car roadshow moving across Gujarat. In 12 hours, 3 mega road shows in Gujarat, including two lined up today in #Somnath and #Vadodara.”

With biting sarcasm, she added: “Modi ji’s planes and convoys do not run on petrol or diesel. They are non-biological like him. They run on water. You can add hypocrisy & Godi media to it. Otherwise all is perfect and we are the Super Power.”

The prime minister’s announced travel plans – he is to leave on a seven-day trip to the UAE, Sweden, Netherlands, Norway and Italy on Friday – also came in for scorn.

One user wrote: “Irony dies multiple demonetisation deaths! He urges everyone not to travel but travels in big aircraft!”