Demonetisation helped thieves convert black money to white: Rahul Gandhi

He alleged that the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi were busy dividing society

Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi on Friday alleged that the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi were busy dividing society in their quest to retain power.

Only the Congress ideology could take on the BJP and the RSS, he said at a party rally.

Gandhi also took potshots at the Modi-led government on demonetisation and described the exercise as a total flop.

"Entire India knows that it turned the black money of India's 'thieves' to white," the Congress leader said.

"First they said demonetisation would result in checking terror. Then they said demonetisation would check black money. The reality is that everyone in India knows that 90 per cent of black money is in real estate, gold," he said.

"We don't know the reason why Modi was after the cash of farmers, poor labourers and housewives," he said.

Gandhi also took a dig at RBI, saying it took almost a year to announce that 99 per cent of the scrapped currency had been returned to the coffers.

"We had asked in Parliament about the amount of black money unearthed in the demonetisation exercise. It took RBI a year to say that 99 per cent of old money came back in the coffers," the Congress leader said.

He blamed the government for GDP reaching "a low of 4.5 per cent".

"Who will own responsibility for this? The prime minister is responsible for this," Gandhi said.

According to Gandhi, anger was building up with the BJP and Modi engaged in dividing society.

"In Haryana they pit Jat vs non Jat and in Maharashtra they create a Maratha vs non Maratha divide. Their only goal is that BJP and RSS should be in power," Gandhi alleged.

"They speak of fight against corruption but they 'purchase' people (legislators) in Goa and Manipur and also try to purchase people in Gujarat."

Only the Congress ideology, he added, could take on the BJP and RSS.

"They (BJP and RSS) will fight one or two elections. After that it will be the Congress which will be in power."

The Congress leader also criticised the prime minister over his promises of providing jobs to youth.

"Modi had said he would give jobs to two crore youth every year after becoming the prime minister. Two years ago, we were told that just one lakh youth had got jobs and last last year the figure was zero," Gandhi claimed.

"Their minister informed that the unemployment figure is at the lowest... In the last several years," he said.

Commenting on GST, Gandhi said the Modi government was claiming credit but it was the Congress which initiated it.

"There should have been one slab, as against five now. Also, GST should have been capped at 18 per cent, against 28 per cent now in the highest slab," he added.