Sonia mum on scams, focuses on inflation

With more than 10 Assembly elections lined up in the next two years, Congress President Sonia Gandhi wants the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government to tame the rising inflation rates. The UPA chairperson today said: “Booming stock markets and record capital inflows do not reflect the difficulties faced by the majority of our people”.

After a few hours, her son and party general secretary Rahul Gandhi reiterated that there are two Indias, “And, while one India is fast progressing, the India of the poor is stagnant. Our government is trying to bridge the gap between these two Indias.”

While the party is currently embarrassed at the corruption charges against key members, ranging from the Adarsh Housing scam in Mumbai to the preparations for recent Commonwealth Games in Delhi, the top leadership today didn’t utter a word on this issue at the first All India Congress Committee (AICC) meeting after the UPA returned to power.

Rather, the Congress brass focused on inflation and communalism as the two major challenges.

“I am concerned that inflation continues to remain a problem, especially of food items and essential commodities. Reducing the inflation rate significantly remains an important challenge. In recent weeks, food inflation has reduced somewhat but much more needs to be done,” Gandhi said in her opening remarks at the Talkatora Stadium.

Soon after the Congress president made her observations, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee went to explain at length the steps the government had taken to curb inflation. Both Gandhi and Mukherjee also added that the states must do their bit to control inflation. “Controlling the price rise is as much a responsibility of the state governments as it is of the Centre. States take credit for the schemes formulated and funded by the Centre but are quick to blame it when it comes to rising prices. The responsibility of running the public distribution system and of cracking down on black marketers, speculators and hoarders is that of the states,” Gandhi said.

Speaking after Gandhi, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh maintained that the aam aadmi is the focus of UPA’s programmes. “We want the economic growth to benefit all sections of the society,” he said.

Gandhi, in her turn, showered praises on the Prime Minister saying, “Over the term of the UPA government, our economy has registered high growth rates even in the face of a global financial crisis. This is a tribute to the leadership of our Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh”.

While batting for strong economic growth as “it generates the resources needed for implementing much-needed development programmes”, Gandhi also pointed out that “it must also be ecologically sustainable”.

“Environmental concerns today have become issues of national survival. Surely it is possible to find a balance between the need for high economic growth and the equally pressing need to safeguard our national heritage for future generations,” Gandhi added.