Modi Govt is Agenda-Less, Achievement-Less & Argument-Less: Congress

New Observer Post

New Delhi, Aug 13, 2018

The opposition Congress Party has sharply reacted to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s interview to the news agency ANI and said that just nine months short of his five-year term, he could not list a single major achievement of his government.

“This is not what the people of India want to listen to from their Prime Minister. At the last lap of his term, he wants the people of India to buy his massive failures as Acche Din,” Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera said.

Blaming that Mr. Modi had only “spewed unadulterated lies” on the economy and “shed crocodile tears” on the “swiftly tearing social fabric of the country by weaving lies and concocting theories to build a narrative”, Khera said, In 2014, Shri Modi promised the moon for the next 60 months, but now all his ‘so-called targets’ are to be fulfilled in 2022. i.e 108 months now- a self-extension of 48 more months!

“The Congress party would categorically like to tell Shri Modi, that his Govt shall not last beyond the upcoming 9 months. And no matter how much he taunts the opposition, People of India shall give the BJP a befitting reply – first in the upcoming state elections and then in 2019,” he added.

Here is the full text of Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera’s statement issued to the media in Delhi:

“Prime Minister’s monologues in the form of interviews show the unwillingness of Shri Narendra Modi to face a dynamic interactive press conference.

In the so-called interviews given to two outlets, Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi could not even list one big Achievement/Initiative of his Government. It is being touted that Shri Modi spoke about a range of issues in these interviews. ‘Spewing unadulterated lies on Economy and Development’ and ‘Shedding Crocodile tears on the swiftly tearing Social Fabric of the country by weaving Lies’ and ‘Concocting theories to Build a Narrative’ - is not what the People of India want to listen from their Prime Minister. At the last lap of his term, Shri Modi wants the People of India to buy his Massive Failures as ‘Acche Din’.

Jobs & Employment

1. PM Modi` promised 2 crore jobs every year, but his Govt could only create a few lakh jobs per year. Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi stated in his response to the no-confidence motion in Parliament on July 20 that over one crore jobs were created in the country during the past one year. This is nothing but an unscientific exercise to mislead the people is laughable to the least. Most of the jobs, the PM spoke about were 'replacement' jobs and no additional jobs. A person who took up a truck driver’s job, for example, must have been a truck cleaner earlier and the new truck cleaner could have been a help at a roadside dhaba earlier. And, the dhaba-help was a farm labourer earlier. When he left the farms there was no replacement because he was excess labour there anyway. So, the truck driver’s job merely reflects jobs moving away from agriculture to services.

2. EPFO enrolments are not necessarily new jobs. They mostly reflect jobs moving from the unorganized sectors to the organized ones. Also, EPFO data cannot be a measure of job creation because according to statutory requirements, when an organization has 20 or more employees it comes under EPFO’s ambit. So, if a firm has 19 employees and it adds one more to its payroll, then all 20 will have to be registered under EPFO. This gives a false picture that 20 jobs were created instead of just one. Demonetisation destroyed the Economy of Unorganized Sector. A flawed GST continues to haunt trade and business.

3. After two months of the ‘Modi Made Disaster of Demonetisation’ -around 1.26 crore jobs were lost in the unorganized sector (CMIE). As per the ILO, 77% of Indian workers will have vulnerable employment by 2019. Even NitiAayog has admitted in Feb 2018 that India is plagued by ‘unsatisfactory jobs & underemployment

4. Lastly, there are NO Jobs. Joblessness is rampant. Shri Modi says that there is NO data reflect jobs. The only reliable data is the quarterly survey of the Labour Bureau. Those numbers reveal that a few thousand jobs are created — or added — every quarter. That is a far cry from the 2 crore jobs a year that was promised as part of achhe din. Why has the Labour Bureau Survey for Oct-Dec 2017 not been released?

5. Shri Modi exudes the virtues of a MUDRA loan but fails to tell the people of India that average size of MUDRA loans for 91% beneficiaries is a mere ₹23,000. Will anyone be able to open a ‘Pakora Stall with this paltry sum of money?

GST is ‘Gabbar Singh Tax’

Shri Modi has now built a habit of using unparliamentary language in public discourse; we all know how he became the first PM in the history of India to get his remarks expunged in the Parliament. His despicable comments on ‘dacoity’ come as no surprise!

Fact is, there are still protests in the country on GST. Last month we saw an 8- Day nationwide Transport Strike in particularly in Gujarat and Maharashtra which resulted in a loss of Rs 15000 Cr of businesses in Gujarat itself! One of the primary demands of the strike was redressal of e-Way bill, reduction in diesel prices by reducing central and state taxes by bringing it under GST. But has the Modi Govt listened to them?

PM Modi has used GST has an electoral lollypop to flash before elections, just before every major state election, the prices of certain popular items are reduced and Modi ji takes credit! Fact is that this approach has costed the nation. This quarter, it is estimated that the GST collection Rs 517 Cr less than the budgeted target of Rs 6,039 Cr. Hundreds of small and medium industries are still in distress because of 5 rates of GST- But Modi ji is busy patting his Govt’s back!

NPAs: on 24 July, 2018 Minister of State for Finance Shri Shiv Pratap Shukla refused to give year wise and Bank wise details of loans sanctioned after May 2018 which turned into NPAs and resulted into five times increase in NPAs. The Prime Minister conveniently cannot hide behind ‘legacy’ issues and hide his failure to deliver.

NRC Assam

Shri Modi ‘sdeliberate and diabolic agenda to play politics to use NRC as a divisive and emotional tool for misleading the people has already come to the fore!

1. Fake jumlas, empty steam and a divisive mindset is the DNA of the BJP. We challenge PM Modi to stop lying on the deportation of foreigners. Fact is UPA-Congress Government deported 82,728 Bangladeshi foreigners between 2005-2013 as against a mere 1,822 deportation under Modi Government. This has been proven through replies to Parliamentary questions and PIB press releases.

2. NRC Process was initiated by the Congress Party in terms of the historical ‘Assam Accord’ (15th August 1985), authored and signed by the then Prime Minister, Shri Rajiv Gandhi. After preparing elaborate framework, putting in place the modalities, identifying and affixing processes and building a consensus among the stakeholders; Congress Governments, in Assam and at the Centre, had initiated the NRC Process in the year 2005 to identify the foreigners, who had illegally entered India. In 2009, it was the Congress Government headed by Dr. Manmohan Singh, which sanctioned Rs.489 crore and proceeded to appoint 25,000 enumerators for the NRC Process. It was the Congress Government of Assam, headed by Shri Tarun Gogoi, which had completed 80% of the NRC Process by May 2016. Since August 2014, Supreme Court is also monitoring the NRC Process, which has now culminated in a Final Draft of NRC List in July 2018.

3. We would like to remind Modiji that his government own pleaded before the Hon’ble Supreme Court to delay NRC as recently as on 30 November, last year citing law and order concerns. Hon’ble Supreme Court came down heavily on the Modi government and refused to accept its plea.

4. We are also aware that there are multiple anomalies in the Final Draft NRC List, leaving out 40 lakh persons comprising of indigenous Assamese people, Hindu Bengalis, Nepalis, Gorkhas, Tea Tribes, religious minorities, Indian citizens from other States domiciled in Assam as also serving and retired defence personnel and those who are in other public or private sector services. Congress Party reiterates that every Indian Citizen must be given full opportunity to establish their credentials and prove their citizenship in a just, equitable and humane manner, without any fear or favour.

5. If BJP and Modi are so concerned in deporting Bangladeshi illegal migrants back to Bangladesh, then why did MoS Home, ShKirenRijiju and MoS Foreign Affairs, Shri M J Akbar tell Bangladeshi MP SyedNazibul Bashar that they have had a discussion with PM Modi and people left out of NRC shall not be deported back to Bangladesh? (https://aajtak.intoday.in/story/bangladesi-mp-syed-nazibul-bashar-met-kiren-rijiju-mj-akbar-assam-nrc-1-1020826.html )

On the purchase deal of Rafale Fighter Planes, Congress spokesperson Khera posed three questions to Prime Minister Modi, saying –“ People of India are still waiting for simple answers to simple questions”.

1. What is the price per aircraft?

2. Why was the offsets contract withdrawn from HAL and given to a private business house with no experience in the sector?

3. Why was approval from Cabinet Committee on Security not taken before buying 36 fighters?