Narendra Modi a paradoxical Prime Minister: Dr Manmohan Singh

Former prime minister Dr Manmohan Singh on Friday lashed out at the central government and dubbed his successor Narendra Modi as 'a paradoxical Prime Minister'.

While addressing a gathering at the book launch of Congress leader Shashi Tharoor, Singh lauded the book but did not mince his words while attacking Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led central government.

Singh called Shashi's book "The paradoxical Prime Minister" as a "very timely and important book." He further thanked Tharoor for reminding people "that the idea of India is under threat today. From those who not just seek to rule India but to change India's very heart and soul."

The former prime minister, however, said, "Narendra Modi is a paradoxical Prime Minister. He (Modi) has spoken of being a prime minister for all Indians but he presides over and has mostly been silent in the face of widespread communal violence, mob lynching, and cow vigilantism. The environment in our universities and national institutions like the Central Bureau of Investigation is being vitiated."

Singh also hit out at the economic policies of his successor and called Demonetisation and the Goods and Service Tax (GST) disastrous for the nation. "On the economic front, nothing concrete has been done to bring back the promised billions allegedly held abroad as black money. A hastily implemented demonetisation and GST have proven to be disastrous for the economy," he added.

Further sharpening his attack on the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Singh said, "Petrol and diesel prices are at historic high despite the fall in international crude oil prices because the Modi government chose to levy excessive excise duty instead of passing on the benefit of the low prices to the people of India."

He also alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's rule has not been good for India and said, "The Modi government has turned out to be a little more than a series of empty gestures and marketing gimmick with very little substance having been achieved on the ground.