Cong attacks PM on demonetisation

Image
Press Trust of India New Delhi
Last Updated : Feb 08 2017 | 9:22 PM IST
Congress today attacked the Prime Minister Narendra Modi for demonetisation and lack of job creation in the country.
Anand Sharma, former Cabinet Minister, who was the last member to participate in the debate on Motion of Thanks on the President's Address, said the government has failed in all the three goals that were given for initiating the currency pullback on November 8 last year.
"86 per cent of the currency accounting for around Rs 15 lakh crore was taken off. The PM said the action has been taken to check black money, counterfeit notes and terror funding. All the three goals were not achieved," Sharma said.
The money, which was taken off as a result of PM's dramatic announcement on November 8 belonged to poor people, he asserted.
Terming the decision as disastrous, Sharma said three months have passed but still normalcy hasn't returned in the banking system in the country.
"It is just you who are celebrating the country is not," he said.
Pointing to the Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, Sharma said the RBI issued in all about 144 circulars during the demonestisation period.
"There have been job losses, demand has suffered, markets have gone down. The government's asset is its credibility but with this initiative even the banks have lost credibility. Even the credibility of RBI has gone down. The government is treating it as a government department," he noted.
The Congress leader also attacked the PM for not fulfilling any promises which he made before the formation of the government.
"When this government assumed office it showed green pastures to the people of the country. The PM spoke about various issues like security of women, smart cities among various other slogans and these have just remained slogans," Sharma said.
The PM had also said that 1.02 crore jobs would be created in the country as well as MSP for farmed would be raised, he added.
"Instead of creating jobs, there has been a loss of jobs in lakhs. Why the MSP for farmers not raised when there has been a drought for two years and farmers committing suicides in various states," Sharma said.
He added that the PM had announced to bring back black money stashed in foreign countries but has failed to do so.
"PM said Rs 1.86 lakh crore will be brought from foreign countries. Ramdev and some other Devs had given this huge figure and the PM said Rs 15 lakh will be deposited in account of each person in the country," Sharma said.
Stressing that the PM uses "forceful words" in every speech, the former minister urged him to show some "tolerance".
"The country would have achieved more with right policies and not with forceful words. The dignity of your office will be maintained if you have talked about the dignity of others," he said.
He also attacked the PM for using the earthquake jibe for Rahul Gandhi during his speech in Lok Sabha.
"It was not in good taste. The people of Uttarakhand which suffered huge losses should not be reminded of the tragedy," he said.

Disclaimer: No Business Standard Journalist was involved in creation of this content

*Subscribe to Business Standard digital and get complimentary access to The New York Times

Smart Quarterly

₹900

3 Months

₹300/Month

SAVE 25%

Smart Essential

₹2,700

1 Year

₹225/Month

SAVE 46%
*Complimentary New York Times access for the 2nd year will be given after 12 months

Super Saver

₹3,900

2 Years

₹162/Month

Subscribe

Renews automatically, cancel anytime

Here’s what’s included in our digital subscription plans

Exclusive premium stories online

  • Over 30 premium stories daily, handpicked by our editors

Complimentary Access to The New York Times

  • News, Games, Cooking, Audio, Wirecutter & The Athletic

Business Standard Epaper

  • Digital replica of our daily newspaper — with options to read, save, and share

Curated Newsletters

  • Insights on markets, finance, politics, tech, and more delivered to your inbox

Market Analysis & Investment Insights

  • In-depth market analysis & insights with access to The Smart Investor

Archives

  • Repository of articles and publications dating back to 1997

Ad-free Reading

  • Uninterrupted reading experience with no advertisements

Seamless Access Across All Devices

  • Access Business Standard across devices — mobile, tablet, or PC, via web or app

More From This Section

First Published: Feb 08 2017 | 9:22 PM IST

Next Story