Bengaluru: Former prime minister Manmohan Singh today launched a scathing attack on the Modi government for its “disastrous policies” and “economic mismanagement”, and said the country was facing crises that were avoidable.

Singh attacked the government over a series of banking sector frauds, saying the money swindled almost quadrupled from Rs 28,416 crore in September 2013 to Rs 1.11 lakh crore in September 2017. “Perpetrators of these frauds meanwhile escape with impunity. The economic mismanagement of the Modi government, and I say this with great care and responsibility, is slowly eroding the trust of the general public in the banking sector,” he said.

“Our nation today is experiencing difficult times. Our farmers are facing an acute crisis, our aspirational youth are not finding opportunities, and the economy is growing below its potential,” Singh told reporters here. He said the “unfortunate truth” was that each of these crises was “entirely avoidable”.

“It pains me to see how rather than standing up to all these challenges, the governments response has been to stifle dissent when deficiencies are pointed out,” he said. Noting that economic policy has a significant impact on the lives of people, he said it was essential that those tasked with decision making pay careful attention to policies and programmes and not act on mere whims and fancies.

“India is a complex and diverse country and no one person can be the repository of all wisdom,” he said in an apparent dig at Modi. He said every time an answer was sought for any of the “disastrous policies” of the BJP government, “all we hear is that the intentions are virtuous”.

Singh said the intentions of the Modi government which it claimed were good, had resulted in “massive” losses for the country. “Its lack of reasoning and analysis is costing India and our collective future.” The former prime minister said under the UPA governments the growth rate averaged 7 per cent. It was 8 per cent at one point of time despite turbulent global conditions, he said.

The NDA government, he said, clocked inferior growth rate despite a favourable international climate and low oil prices. In fact, growth rate under the NDA is lower in spite of the change in the methodology to determine it “which paints a rosier picture than reality”, Singh said.

According to Singh, two “major avoidable blunders” of the Modi government had been demonetisation and hasty implementation of GST. He said the losses the economy suffered due to these blunders had severely hurt the micro, small and medium enterprises and resulted in the loss of tens of thousands of jobs.

Besides, exports as a share of the GDP plunged to a 14 year low at a time when the global economy was reviving and exports of other Asian nations like Vietnam were growing substantially, he said. Singh said petrol and diesel prices were at a “historic high” despite a fall in international crude oil prices because the Modi government had chosen to levy “excessive” excise duty.

“Instead of passing on the benefits of low prices to the people, the Modi government has punished the people,” he said.

(PTI)

New Delhi: The Supreme Court today vacated the stay on the trial of the Kathua gangrape and murder case and transferred it outside Jammu and Kashmir to Pathankot in Punjab. A bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra directed that the trial in the case should be held in-camera and ordered that the trial be fast-tracked and conducted on a day-to-day basis to avoid any delay.

The top court also said the trial would be in accordance with the provisions of Ranbir Penal Code, applicable in Jammu and Kashmir. The apex court said the trial must be fair to the accused as well as the victim’s family.

It also ordered continuation of security to the family members of the victim, family friends and lawyer representing them and directed translation of statements and records of the case from Urdu to English and also . “The security provided to the juvenile accused will continue,” a bench also comprising Justices D Y Chandrachud and Indu Malhotra said.

The victim, an eight-year-old girl from a minority nomadic community, had disappeared from near her home in a village close to Kathua in the Jammu region on January 10. Her body was found in the same area a week later.

(PTI)

Bengaluru: An announcement on an alliance between the Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) in Uttar Pradesh will be made once the two parties figure out a seat sharing arrangement, BSP supremo Mayawati has said.

“There is some time for the Parliament elections. Once the elections are near and seat adjustment has been figured out, you will get to know,” Mayawati told a news channel.

Asked whether the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was “frightened” with the likely alliance, she said it was obvious for them to be so.

“Communal forces of the BJP and the RSS will not like it when secular forces unite, organise and progress further,” said Mayawati who was in Karnataka to campaign for the Janata Dal-Secular for the May 12 Assembly elections.

Replying to a question, she said the BSP has never been, nor would be pressurised by parties like the BJP or Congress.

(IANS)

New Delhi: Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Monday accused the BJP government of “loot” in the name of “fuel” by collecting Rs ten lakh crore in taxes on petrol, LPG and diesel and not passing on the benefit of falling international crude price to the common people.

“The BJP government collected 10,00,000 crore in taxes on petrol/LPG/diesel since 2014. Yet, no relief in prices for our citizens,” he said in a tweet.

Gandhi shared a one minute forty two seconds long video on Twitter, saying “this video shows the truth about fuel prices under PM Modi”.

The video shows that “despite international crude oil prices dropping up to 67 per cent in four years of Modi government, petrol, diesel prices are skyrocketing”.

The Congress chief said that increasing prices of fuel were a symbol of the failure of the central government.

“The government that promised ‘Achhe Din’ is silent. Let’s rewind BJP’s stand on petrol-diesel prices. Increasing petrol prices are symbol of failure of central government. People are angry and it will have negative impact on other sectors.”

In the video, Rahul alleged that more than Rs 50,000 crore in taxes was collected every year but the government was not reducing the petrol prices.

“After coming to power, the Modi government has looted common people of Rs 10,00,000 crore by taxing gas, diesel and petrol. Since 2014, Modi government increased central tax on petrol by Rs 8.78 litre, diesel by Rs 10.37 litre.”

Gandhi’s video says that the people friendly Congress government in Karnataka has reduced state tax on petrol by Rs 3.11 litre, diesel by Rs 1.03 litre in the last five years.

“At least 18.11 crore LPG customers suffering under the greedy Modi government. Subsidized LPG cylinder Rs 491.35 in Delhi, Rs 427 in Bengaluru (due to reduced taxes in Karnataka). Non-subsidized LPG cylinder Rs 635.5 in Delhi, Rs 622.5 in Bengaluru (due to reduced taxes in Karnataka),” shows the video.

It further shows “BJP is cruel, they loot in the name of fuel”.

The Congress chief added that he would lead a protest against these prices in Kolar on Monday noon.

(IANS)