Congress indulging in 'cheap criticism' of NDA's pro-poor initiatives: Naidu

Says govt has taken several welfare measures during its one year in power

Dismissing the Congress Party's charge against the NDA government as 'cheap criticism', Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu on Saturday said the Centre has taken pro-poor and pro-farmer initiatives during its first year of governance.

"Everywhere, pro-poor, pro-farmer, pro-women and pro-youth initiatives are being taken by this government," Naidu told ANI.

Reacting to the Congress' charge of NDA being a 'suit boot ki sarkar', Naidu said the former was a 'loot, cheat and jhoot' government during its ten years in power.

"This kind of cheap criticism will not help anybody," he said.

"Our government is for the common man, our government brought in social security, the Jan Dhan Yojna and 15 crore bank accounts. Then, you have the Jan Suraksha Yojna, where you pay one rupee per month and get Rs 2 lakh as accident insurance, 90 paisa per day and you get Rs 2 lakh as insurance for common people, Rs. 42 per month and you get Rs 1,000 as pension on reaching 60 years. All of these are welfare measures," he added.

"Our ideological opponents are raising their voices, otherwise, the common man and the average Indian is happy, because, India's prestige has gone up, its international recognition has gone up, the respect has gone up, investments are coming, despair and depression are gone and the country is moving forward. Inflation is under control, the economy has revived and the rupee is gaining strength. Because of all this, people are happy," Naidu said.

Naidu also said that the government's rule in the last year has been corruption-free, while the UPA regime's term was full of scams.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led NDA Government will complete a year in office on May 26.