New Delhi: A day after Kapil Sibal left the Congress party, the grand old party on Thursday addressed media personnel from its headquarters here and criticized the Modi government for fuelling hatred and said that "it's been 8 years since the BJP came to power. Before coming into power (pre-2014), they came up with a slogan 'Ache Din Aane Walle hai, Modi Ji Laane Vaale Hai' but are we seeing any such 'Ache Din," asked Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala.
Launching a small booklet on the performance of the BJP government in the last 8 years titled "8 years, 8 lies and the failures of the BJP government", Surjewala blamed the Modi government for failed economic policies and for helping a handful of big industrialists whose name we later saw in the huge bank frauds, he said.
Taking a jibe at the Modi government, Surjewala said that looking at India's growth in terms of economic prosperity, the country is witnessing its biggest inflation and unemployment crisis. "And the saffron party talks about bringing 'Ache Din'! Whose 'Ache Din' are they talking about," questioned Surjewala.
On Rahul Gandhi's visit to London to which BJP is raising issues, Surjewala said, ''I am reiterating again if you are a minister or holding a public office, or a government official, then you need political clearance. Rahul Gandhi is a parliamentarian and only needed an FCRA clearance. We still are a democratic country and don't live in the stone age and the BJP wants to rake up this issue so that they can divert public attention from other key issues such as unemployment, inflation, and others."
In his address, Ajay Maken, a key leader in the Congress party, cites India's position in the global hunger index. "In 2014, it was 55 and now it stands at 101. In the freedom of press index, we now stand at the 150th spot, gender gap index has risen from 114 in 2014 to 140 in 2022. The democracy index has increased from 27 to 46. Is this what you call Ache Din," asked Maken.
Calling the Modi government 'Jumle Ki Sarkaar', the Congress party said that at this point in time the country is witnessing its biggest unemployment crisis in the last 45 years. "We are seeing the disastrous effects of inflation, cylinder price which was used to be around Rs 450 during the Congress regime is now pegged at Rs 1000. Oil prices, petrol, and diesel prices are all rising up and the BJP government has been reducing the corporate taxes and the burden of which is put on the middle and poor strata," said Maken and adds that the BJP has brought 'Ache din' but only for a handful of industrialists.
"We have 62 lakhs vacancies in the government sector, be it in the state or at the center, like the army and police recruitment but the BJP does not want to talk about this and is keen on playing a communal card by talking about 80-20," said a Congress leader.
"China has occupied our territory at Depsang, Demchok, and in other areas as well but Modiji does not talk about it. The price of the rupee is witnessing its biggest fall in comparison to the dollar. The saffron party is privatizing PSUs and is aiding big industrialists and it would take away the rights of SC/ST and OBCs reservations in days come," added Congress leaders. In the past 8 years, nearly 10000 communal riots have happened, and would you now call this 'Ache Din', said Maken.
Commenting on Rahul Gandhi's 'India is not a nation but a union of states', Surjewala said, "Yes, India is a union of states. I am from Haryana. Can India be without Haryana or Uttar Pradesh, for that matter?"
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