Former Finance Minister P Chidambaram on Saturday attacked the Centre over its handling of the economy and asked the Modi Government to gather courage to go for bold reforms and at the same time remarked the most notable failure of the NDA Government has been in job creation.
“Once the economy stabilised as I believe it had by June 2014, the Government should have then given the economy a big push by going for bold structural reforms, taken the difficult decisions which were pending because UPA did not have absolute majority in the lok Sabha,” Chidambaram said at Special AICC briefing on the economy scenario prevailing in the two year Modi regime.
“Now this Government has 282 or may be 283 (seats) in the lok Sabha, it should pick up the courage and take up bold structural reform and in doing so, it must engage the Opposition. The Congress is willing to engage if the Government means business,” the Congress leader said. On GST, Chidambaram said, the Government has failed to engage the Congress over the three principal objections raised by it.
The Congress also released a 59-page booklet dismissing the Government’s claims on performance on completion of two years in office and slammed it for alleged “systematic attack on institutions, icons and inclusiveness”.
On the occasion, Chidambaram also wondered whether the Modi Government “deserves” Raghuram Rajan as RBI chief and describing him as “one of the most outstanding economists in the world”. “I am beginning to think whether this Government deserves Rajan,” Chidambaram replied when asked whether he should be given a second term.
He also indicated that Government’s record in agriculture is dismal and growth was negative at -0.2 per cent in 2014-15 and a meagre 1.1 per cent in 2015-16 and the Government failed to anticipate and tackle the acute distress in rural India.
With regards to industry, Chidambaram said, annual sales growth of all firms in 2015-16 was negative at -5.7 per cent and annual sales growth of manufacturing firms was negative at -11.2 per cent.
“All I can point out is there are no jobs, there are no industries, industries are in slump, exports are down for 17th successive month and nobody seems to care. If exports are down, thousands of jobs must have been lost and that’s the logical inference. The citizens of this country will drop their own score cards. The average citizens need jobs and incomes. They do not consume GDP numbers,” Chidambaram said.
He also pointed out that it’s only the BJP and not its allies which are celebrating two years of the Government and the NDA constituents like Shiv Sena have been “extremely critical” of the ruling party.
Using terms like “Dull and dark shadow crept over India in the last two years” the Congress’ booklet claimed to be Sachchaai Ka Aaina (Mirror of Reality). AICC trained its guns on the NDA dispensation on a wide range of issues, including economy, employment, price rise and foreign policy.
“Muscled thugs impose their ideas of morality and lynch mobs kill people on mere suspicion. BJP leaders spew venomous messages of hate and violence to question the patriotism of every Indian who disagrees with them,” the party said in a 59-page booklet, titled Pragati Ki Tham Gayi Chaal, Do Saal, Desh Ka Bura Hal (The pace of progress has stopped. Two years and the nation’s bad plight).