Seeking to take the wind out of the BJP's media blitzkrieg, Congress today challenged the government for a debate on the issue of performance of the Modi dispensation in the past two years.
"We would like to challenge this government for a debate at any time and any place of their choosing on the 2 years of NDA-BJP Government", party spokesman Manish Tewari told reporters targeting the government over its record in governance.
Making light of Finance Minister Arun Jaitley's threat that the government would reveal the names of Congress leaders involved in various scams, he accused the government of "misusing" CBI and other agencies against its opponents.
He said that Congress is unfazed by such actions of the government and would fight them politically and legally.
Taking a jibe at BJP chief Amit Shah over his claims that there were no allegations of corruption in the last two years, he said that under the Modi regime, several scams have taken place and the Government has hardly taken any concrete steps to deal with them.".
"We would like to remind Amit Shah that DDCA Scam, GSPC Scam, Chikki Scam, Chhattisgarh PDS Scam, Lalit Gate, the Vijay Mallya escapade, Bank of Baroda Scam and the Vyapam Scam where more than 50 whistle blowers were killed are some of the shining examples of Modi Government's achievements", he said.
On the interview of Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar in which he has said that he never named Congress president Sonia Gandhi as an accused in the AgustaWestland case, he said that the party does not need certificate from the BJP or its ministers.
Claiming that there was policy paralysis during Modi Government, he said that it was less said the better on the matter.
"The Number of stalled projects is highest since Modi Government took office. As of March 2016 there are 893 stalled projects, which is an increase of 17 % since March 2014. Is this not policy paralysis?", he asked.
Seeking to dismiss government claims, Tewari emphasised that the Indian Economy is in a "big mess."
"No domestic investment is taking place, there's a been flight of capital and flight of entrepreneurs in the past one year, the number of business people becoming NRI is perhaps a record.", he added.
Asked why Congress' ally Nitish Kumar was not in the
favour of protests against demonetisation, Ramesh said JDU leader Sharad Yadav was supporting it.
He claimed that the Pune-based organisation, which is said to be behind the the demonetisation idea, has also said the way it is being implemented is not what they had suggested.
Congress was not against the objectives of the measure and will support steps against black money and corruption, but the reality of the situation is different, he said.
Only two per cent of people in the country undertake cashless transactions. It will take time before the country becomes cashless, he said.
The Prime Minister, who believes in "sound bytes", has been talking of "cashless and lesscash society. Does he want cashless mandis also?" the Congress leader asked.
Citing National Investigation Agency (NIA) estimates, he said counterfeit notes make up just 0.02 per cent of the total currency in circulation. To tackle this, 80 per cent of people, be it farmers, the unorganised and small-scale sector have been subjected to inconvenience.
Accusing the Prime Minister of making tall claims, Ramesh said an action plan should have been readied and the shortcomings examined.
He said it is estimated that only 5-10 per cent of black money is kept in cash, while most of it is in the form of gold, silver, benami property or stashed abroad.
A lot of discomfiture had been caused to people by demonetising Rs 500 notes abruptly, he said.
The Prime Minister had remarked "na khaaonga, na khaane doonga", but Saurabh Patel, who was a minister in the then Modi-led Gujarat government, is learnt to have been linked to a company based in Bahamas, where many tax evaders go, Ramesh alleged.
(REOPENS DEL41)
Asked if Congress was in favour of holding of Lok Sabha
and Assembly elections simultaneously, Ramesh said there were merits as well as demerits of it.
In 2002, a Congress party committee headed by Manmohan Singh had suggested that there should be state funding of elections, he said, adding that various state elections also enforced accountability.
