BJP govt withdrew RBI money to appease corporates: C'garh CM

The BJP government withdrew Rs 1.74 lakh crore from the Reserve Bank of India to appease corporates and industrialists, and the nation would not have faced recession is this amount was earmarked for farmers, Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel said here on Tuesday.

Campaigning for the Congress for the October 21 Maharashtra Assembly polls, he said the BJP was making revocation of Article 370 provisions in Jammu and Kashmir a poll issue here as the Devendra Fadnavis government had nothing to show by way of achievements.

He condemned scrapping of Article 370 and conversion of Jammu and Kashmir from a state to a Union Territory.

"Would anyone tolerate it if such a thing was done with Mumbai," he asked the gathering.

"Prime Minister Narendra Modi talks of Article 370 because he did not care to fulfill promises made to farmers five years ago," he said.

Taking a swipe at BJP's programmes marking the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, Baghel said, "Gandhiji's nationalism gave respect to all castes, creed and communities. Whereas the BJP and the RSS' nationalism terms anybody anti- national for speaking against them."