Ha, ha, ha, Rs 11,400cr scam in 73 words. All clear? Mitron, read the kid's face

Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Hadrien Trudeau, the youngest child of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, during a  ceremonial welcome at Rashtrapati Bhavan on Friday. Pictures by Prem Singh 

TT: Even 50 Nirav Modis cannot spoil the image of Narendra Modi because of his strong credibility, Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis declared on Friday.

By then, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had proved he’s made of stuff sterner than 50 NiMos. Prime Minister Modi uttered a princely 73 words to explain a scam that allegedly cost the taxpayers Rs 11,400 crore.

The following is what the Prime Minister told a business summit in New Delhi on Friday night, apparently “breaking” his nine-day silence on the biggest banking scam in the country: “An appeal that I also want to make is that in different financial institutions, people responsible for upholding rules and ethics should discharge their duties with full sincerity.

Especially those who are responsible for oversight and monitoring. I want to make it clear that this government is taking, will continue to take and will take strict action against irregularities related to financial issues. This system will not accept irregular appropriation of people’s money.”

Fadnavis put NaMo above 50 NiMos while alleging in Mumbai that the UPA government, four to five days before demitting office, had signed some documents to enable the banking scam.