Jaipur (Rajasthan): Brushing off the BJP's criticism that Rahul Gandhi meeting migrant workers was a mere PR stunt, Rajasthan Congress in-charge Avinash Pandey said that the former was in fact urging fellow party workers to help the needy.
In an exclusive interview with ETV Bharat, Pandey said that by meeting migrant workers, Rahul Gandhi was sending out a message to fellow party workers to step forward and help as many people as possible during this hour of crisis.
Pandey added that Gandhi's only motive was to share the pain of the migrant workers and boost their morale, even in the scorching heat.
On migrants' train fare
On the BJP's charge that the Rajasthan government was not even paying the required 15 per cent for the train fares of migrants, Pandey said that it was not just them, but many states who were asking the Centre to make proper arrangements to ferry migrants back home. He further said that the existing number of trains being operated is not enough.
On Rajasthan's fight against COVID-19
On the state's fight against the pandemic, Pandey said it was not just the state government, but all Congress workers, who were chipping in. He said that the government was focusing on each minute detail and was trying to resolve even the smallest of issues.
Read: EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Evacuating all stranded migrants top priority, says MoS Railways Suresh Angadi
Expressing confidence that the state will be successful in overcoming the pandemic, Pandey said that the government was trying to help farmers and small businessman during these tough times.
On Centre's stimulus package
Expressing disappointment over the Centre's Rs 20 lakh crore stimulus package, Pandey said it was yet another case of the BJP government indulging in "jugglery of numbers". He said most of the announcements from the union budget were being repackaged as the special stimulus.
He added that the government must reconsider and come up with a concrete plan so that people actually benefit from the package.
Claiming that most of the experts were not convinced with the package, Pandey said that the actual money that various sectors will receive is not 10 per cent, 0.75 per cent.
He further added that many of the announcements were in the form of loans, which will just create more burden on businessmen. He said that not a single sector might actually benefit from the package.
Read: Fewer buses, no social distancing: Passengers complain as DTC resumes bus services
