Moody's Analytics stands by report after Modi govt rebuts it

Clarification from the agency comes in response to a statement issued by the Press Information Bureau

A day after the Modi government dismissed a Moody’s Analytics report as “the personal opinion of a Junior Associate Economist”, the agency responded to media queries and stood by its report.

Responding to the government criticism of their report, a spokesperson of Moody’s Analytics said,“The report was published by and is the view of Moody’s Analytics as part of its economic outlook series. The report included a section observing political developments in the context of their potential economic impact, and did not advocate any political agenda or perspective.” 

The clarification from the agency came in response to a statement issued by the Press Information Bureau (PIB). Five days after the report came out, PIB issued a statement saying: “It is with regret the Government of India notes the irresponsible and distorted reporting by certain sections of the Indian media on what was the personal opinion of a Junior Associate Economist employed with Moody’s Analytics.”

 

“The Government notes with distress that the personal opinion of a junior analyst was passed off as a commentary on India by a rating agency by the media to buttress the narrative it wants to portray,” the statement added. 

The Moody’s Analytics report, titled ‘India Outlook: Searching for Potential’, expressed concern over what it called the belligerent provocation against various Indian minorities. Sounding a note of caution over the increasing instances of violence, the report said the government would face stiffer opposition in the Upper House as the debate turned away from economic policy. “Modi must keep his members in check or risk losing domestic and global credibility,” the report cautioned.

Moody’s Shared Services India had shared the report with the media through email as it does all notes from Moody’s Analytics and Moody’s Investors Service Inc. The email said the publication was produced by Moody’s Analytics and “if sourcing or referencing any contents from this publication, please quote Moody’s Analytics”.