Mr. Gandhi attacks BJP on soaring inflation
Congress Vice-President, Rahul Gandhi, cornered the Government in the Lok Sabha on the steep and uncontrolled rise in food prices including potatoes, tomatoes and lentils. He accused the Prime Minister of forgetting his promise to be the nation's 'chowkidar'. Gandhi lamented that PM Modi speaks about Digital India, StartUp India, Make in India but never about a common man's problems like price rise.
Rahul Gandhi's earlier speeches
Rahul Gandhi coined the term 'suit-boot government' to attack the BJP for consistently favouring the interests of corporates over the poor. He mocked a Government scheme introduced earlier this year to encourage tax defaulters to come clean and declare hidden wealth. He questioned the effectiveness of the 'Make in India' initiative and whether it had created any jobs for the Indian youth.
Make in India & Black Money Scheme
'Make in India' was launched in September 2015 to encourage MNCs and domestic companies to manufacture locally. It also targeted to create 100 million jobs by 2022. However, a CII report indicated that the targeted job creation would fall short by 92 million. The declaration terms under the black money were so punitive that only a minuscule number of people declared their hidden wealth.
Steep food inflation
The price of pulses has risen by nearly 20% month after month over the last year. During UPA's term, difference between the MSP and the market price was Rs. 30. However currently the difference is Rs. 100. The shortage in pulses is allegedly due to corruption and leakage by middlemen. The Government increased imports but India produces very little pulses compared to other nations.
What is MSP?
Minimum Support Price (MSP) is the price at which the Government purchases crops from farmers. MSP is essentially a tool to ensure adequate production of certain crops in the country. Normally, the minimum support prices are announced at the beginning of the sowing season.
Government's reaction
Finance Minister, Arun Jaitley, strongly countered Rahul Gandhi's allegations concerning food inflation. He alleged that due to acute policy paralysis during UPA Government's term, the country had been saddled with double digit inflation. He stated that present inflation was due to 'seasonal factors' and that the Government had taken several steps to remedy the situation which would improve further on arrival of the monsoons.