As Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government approaches nine years in power on May 30, the Congress party has posed nine questions to him on various issues such as the economy, corruption, the China border dispute, Covid management, and social justice.
In a document titled ‘9 saal 9 sawaal’ (Nine years, nine questions), the Congress party listed their queries and demanded answers from the Prime Minister. Jairam Ramesh, the Congress General Secretary Communication in-charge, stated that these questions were originally raised by Rahul Gandhi during his Bharat Jodo Yatra, but since they remained unanswered, they are being brought up again.
During a press conference held at the party headquarters in New Delhi, Ramesh, who is also a Rajya Sabha MP, began by addressing the issue of the economy.
He highlighted the concerns over inflation, the flawed implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST), and the impact of demonetization. Ramesh questioned why inflation and unemployment rates continue to rise, why the rich are getting richer while the poor become poorer, and why public sector undertakings (PSUs) are being privatized.
Moving on to the agricultural sector, Ramesh raised the issue of farmers’ income not doubling in the past nine years and criticized the government for not fulfilling the promise of implementing the Minimum Support Price (MSP) even after repealing the controversial farm laws.
Corruption and cronyism were also targeted by Ramesh, who questioned the government’s decisions regarding investments in LIC and SBI that could potentially put people’s savings at risk to benefit a close associate, Adani.
He further criticized the government for allowing corruption to flourish in states governed by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and neglecting the plight of the Indian citizens.
The Congress leader also accused the government of disrupting social harmony by promoting a politics of hatred for electoral gains and creating an atmosphere of fear in society.
Continuing the onslaught, Ramesh accused the government of systematically dismantling the foundations of social justice and remaining silent on atrocities against women, Dalits, Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST), Other Backward Classes (OBCs), and minorities.
He questioned why the demand for a caste census, supported by the Congress and several opposition parties, was being ignored.
Ramesh then turned his attention to democracy and federalism, criticizing the weakening of constitutional values and democratic institutions over the past nine years.
He accused the government of seeking revenge against opposition parties and leaders while using money power to destabilize elected governments.
The Congress leader expressed concern about the devaluation of institutions, the misuse of investigation agencies, and the consistent effort to confront the judiciary.
Ramesh further questioned the government’s decision to cut the budgets of welfare schemes, which he believed weakened programs aimed at assisting the poor, needy, and tribal communities.
The Congress party also criticized the government’s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic, accusing it of refusing to compensate families of the deceased and implementing a sudden lockdown without providing adequate support to migrant workers.
Ramesh announced that the party would hold press conferences in 35 cities to highlight the failures of the BJP government during its nine years in power.
Meanwhile, Congress leader Pawan Khera called on Prime Minister Modi to apologize to the people, stating that the promises made by the government were mere fiction and did not reflect the reality of people’s lives. (Edited).
