Describing Narendra Modi as a “failed Prime Minister,” Bharat Rashtra Samithi president and Telangana chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao said that the country had fallen from “frying pan to fire” after people voted the Bharatiya Janata Party to power by defeating the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government.
Replying to the debate on the Appropriation Bill in the state assembly on the last day of the state budget session, KCR, as the chief minister is known, said “Modi proved to be the most inefficient Prime Minister the country had ever witnessed”.
“In fact, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had done a better job than Modi. The former never boasted about his achievements and went about his job quietly. Yet, people voted for Modi hoping that he would provide a much better rule, but it was like falling from a frying pan to fire,” he said.
Quoting from a book “The Lost Decade” written by journalist Puja Mehra, KCR said during the Modi regime, the nation fared poorly across all sectors; yet, the government was boasting of successes that were never achieved.
He said had the Manmohan Singh regime continued, Telangana’s GSDP (Gross State Domestic Product) would have been ₹16 lakh crore as against the present ₹13 lakh crore. “Because of the inefficient rule of the BJP, the state had lost ₹3 lakh crore”, he said.
KCR described the Modi government’s goal of India achieving a US $5 trillion economy by 2023-24 a “joke” and “silly.” That US $5 trillion economy aims itself is very less; but even it looks impossible now, as only US $3.5 trillion was achieved,” he said.
Stating that the per capita income of a nation reveals the real story, KCR said out of 192 countries, India was on the 139th position in terms of per capita income, while even Bangladesh, Bhutan and Sri Lanka were far ahead. “There should have been a debate on this issue in the Parliament but unfortunately, the BJP bulldozes members from other parties,” he said.
The chief minister lashed out at Modi for not uttering a single word over the Adani issue in the Parliament. Referring to “The Economist” magazine’s story on the humbling of Gautam Adani being a test for Indian capitalism, KCR said the M had delivered the “most disgusting” speech in the Parliament.
“The Life Insurance Corporation had invested a lot in the company and ever since the scam broke out, billions had evaporated. The entire nation was keen to know what the Centre would do on the Adani issue, but Modi skirted the topic in his speech. There was no assurance, no mention of constituting a committee,” KCR said.
He pointed out that after Modi came to power, more than 20 lakh people had given up Indian citizenship. “Parents in our country celebrate when their children secure Green Cards in the United States. What do such trends indicate?” he asked.
Accusing the Modi government of indulging in indiscriminate privatisation of public sector enterprises, the CM said Centre was indulging in “socialisation of losses and privatisation of profits.”
“Modi says the government has no business to do business. I say the government has every right to do business wherever it is required. The government has no business means it is escaping from the responsibility entrusted by the people of India. We should share the responsibility,” he said.
Stating that the BJP was not invincible, he recalled that after the Bangladesh war, former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, too, was hailed as invincible but people had dethroned the Congress from power. “Power is temporary and people will teach a fitting lesson to the BJP by voting it out,” he said.
KCR also raised objections to restrictions to screen the BBC’s documentary. “One should have patience and tolerance…we are at the mercy of people to come to power,” he said.
Reacting sharply to KCR’s comments in the assembly, BJP Telangana unit president Bandi Sanjay accused KCR of misusing the state assembly to hurl abuses at the Prime Minister.
“It is a tradition that no member should make any comments against a person who is not a member of the House. But KCR deviated from the tradition and hurled abuses at Modi in a disrespectful manner,” he alleged.
Sanjay challenged that the BJP was ready for a comprehensive debate on what the Centre had done for Telangana and “how much money it had released” to the state vis-Ã -vis what the BRS government had done for the people of the state in the last nine years.
