The government that could not stop inflation...

Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Pic/PTI

One of the key slogans in the Bhartiya Janata Party's (BJP) manifesto ten years ago was, ‘Mehangai jo rok na saki woh sarkar nikkami hai; Jo sarkar nikkami hai woh sarkar badalni hai' (The government which could not stop inflation is useless; the useless government should be changed). This slogan is being recalled today as well after inflation went up a hundred times in the last ten years.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi publicly says in his speeches about giving free food to 80 crore people. It is said that the population of the country is 140 crore, of which Modiji gives free food to 80 crore people. What do these numbers mean - we are getting poorer or richer? Someone needs to tell that Modiji is leading by creating illusions and there is a danger ahead. Modiji's illusion is deceptive. The country's economy has never been worse. Issues like unemployment, inflation and poverty have reached the highest limits. Here is the article to explain all the problems India is facing, which the ruling party never mentions.

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Indian Prime Minister, Jagadguru ‘Apdo' Manas Narendraji, criticises the Congress party while addressing public rallies. But the real situation is never visible. If we verify the points from his speeches, it is revealed that the country is standing at the peak of inflation, unemployment and hunger.

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Modiji says, "People who have come out of poverty will continue to get free food grains. It is argued that why 80 crores are fed while 25 crores are said to have come out of the poverty line. Doctors' advice is to take care of food and drink for some time after the patient is discharged from the hospital. That is why the new middle class gets more attention. We give grain and will continue."

But when we look at the facts and numbers, if free food for 80 crore people out of the total 140 crore population, it comes to 60 per cent. Now the question arises, are 60 per cent of citizens hungry? Does that mean 80 crore people are below the poverty line or unemployed? With this, is the country progressing or regressing, is a matter of study.

According to the Periodic Labor Force Survey (PLFS) conducted by the Ministry of Statistics and Program Implementation, as of 2022-23, Chandigarh has the lowest unemployment rate with 5.6 per cent among graduates aged 15 years and above, followed by Delhi with 5.7 per cent. Andaman and Nicobar Islands have the highest unemployment rate at 33 per cent, followed by Ladakh at 26.5 per cent and Andhra Pradesh at 24 per cent, the data says. Among the larger states, the unemployment rate was 23.1 per cent in Rajasthan and 21.9 per cent in Odisha.

When there is so much unemployment, Modiji should disclose what exact steps he is taking to generate employment. But in his speeches, only Congress is targeted. If 60 per cent of the population in the country is taking free food grains, it can be well understood the level of increasing poverty.

Why no equal distribution among all states?

Modiji in his speech made another important point that ‘our tax, our money; the future of the country is in danger.' The entire government is entering the fray and creating false statements. If a boy from Jharkhand brings a medal in the Olympics, we say you are from Jharkhand. We say that they are the people of the country. What are you doing, what language are you using?

The language they use is, ‘the vaccine was made in that corner of the country'. Will it not benefit other parts of the country? What kind of ideology is this? Such an ideology was formed in a national party. The Himalayan ranges should start saying that, when rivers flow from our place, only we have a right to the water. He should say that the states which has coal, will not get coal. During Covid- 19 pandemic, when oxygen was needed, eastern countries could have refused to supply oxygen. But they faced crises themselves and delivered oxygen to Western countries.

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Talking about our taxes, the states paying the highest taxes should get their justice, which does not seem to be happening. For instance, if a state per year pays Rs 100 tax, how much does it get in return?

A list has been published on social media in the meantime, which says Maharashtra pays Rs 100 and gets back only Rs 7.70. If we look at other states, Punjab receives Rs 72, Gujarat Rs 31, Telangana Rs 49, Andhra Pradesh Rs 46, Tamil Nadu Rs 29, Karnataka Rs 13 etc.

The Cabinet of Karnataka State took to the streets against this. Should we say that the Cabinet of Maharashtra State has nothing to do with it? When the opposition party is in power, it can be called politics if less funds are given. This is injustice because when taking the oath as minister, everyone swears that they will not be biased towards anyone. But we can understand that bias is a part of politics. But in Maharashtra, where the Mahayuti government is in alliance with the ruling BJP in the centre, still they are biased.

Attack on corruption or get corrupt leaders in BJP?

The Prime Minister commented on corruption in his speech. He said, 'Earlier the entire time of the House was spent discussing scams and corruption. There were constant demands for action, everywhere there were only reports of corruption. Today, when action is taken against the corrupt, these people riot in their support. When he said this Narayan Rane was sitting in the next row. Leaders like Praful Patel also support Modi now.

Modiji had accused Ajit Pawar of the scam of Rs 70 thousand crore, and even he is in alliance with BJP today. Many such examples can be given. Modiji's policy seems to be to attack corruption and then take corrupt leaders into the BJP.

Which glass will you lift?

If we go deeper, we will get a clear picture of where the country is going. It is in the hands of common people to save this country from the chaos. Uddhav Thackeray's Shiv Sena in his speech gave an example, "One glass is placed in front of you with the word 'poison' and the other is placed with the word 'I don't know what it is'. You have to pick up one of those glasses and drink. Which glass would you pick?"

It is not that nothing good has happened in the last ten years. The country has seen two of the richest businessmen! Though the country was praised internationally, issues like inflation, unemployment and hunger are not addressed.

And ‘Mahagai jo rok na saki wo sarkar nikkami hai; jo sarkar nikkami hai wo sarkar badalni hai' (change the government which could not solve inflation) is the slogan of BJP itself. Isn't it?

Harshal Pradhan is the spokesperson for Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray).

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this column are those of the individual and don't represent those of the paper.