PM's Make in India failed; alternative vision must focus on energy, mobility revolution: Rahul
New Delhi, Feb 3 (PTI): Claiming that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 'Make in India' initiative has failed, Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi on Monday presented an alternative vision which greatly enhances the participation of Dalits, tribals and OBCs, and also ensures the energy and mobility revolution is not given up to the Chinese.
He, however, conceded that successive governments, be it the Congress-led UPA or the the BJP-led NDA, have not been able to tackle unemployment and give a clear cut answer to the youth on employment.
Speaking on the Motion of Thanks on the President's address, Gandhi centred his address around on what a presidential address under an INDIA bloc government would look like.
"When we talk to the US, we wouldn't send our foreign minister to (get) our PM invited to his (US President's) coronation. We will not send our foreign minister 3-4 times (to say) please invite our prime minister... because if we had a robust production system and were working on technologies, the US President would come to India and invite our PM," Gandhi said to protests from the treasury benches with Union minister Kiren Rijiju asking him not to make "unsubstantiated allegations" on India's foreign policy.
Gandhi's remarks were an apparent reference to External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar travelling to the US ahead of President Donald Trump's inauguration. Jaishankar, later represented India at the inauguration on January 20.
Noting that India's future is going to be decided by the youth, Gandhi said the country has grown at a fast pace in the past and is now growing at a slower rate, but it has not been able to address the universal problem of unemployment.
"Neither the UPA government nor today's NDA government has given a clear cut answer to the youth about unemployment," the former Congress chief said.
He also said 'Make in India' was a good idea, but the prime minister "pretty much failed". PM Modi was present in the House when Gandhi spoke.
"Manufacturing fell from 15.3 per cent of GDP in 2014 to 12.6 per cent of GDP today i.e. the lowest share of manufacturing in 60 years," he said.
"I am not even blaming the prime minister because it would not be fair to say that the prime minister did not try. I think the prime minister tried and conceptually 'Make in India' was a good idea but it is pretty clear that he failed," Gandhi said.
He said the alternative vision must answer how the problem of unemployment will be solved.
Every government since 1990 has done a decent job on organising consumption but the record of the country in organising production is dismal, Gandhi said. "What we have done is that we have handed over the organisation of production to the Chinese." He said that due to rising unemployment, social tension is on the rise in India.
Gandhi said that his message to the youth is that a mobility revolution is taking place as "we are moving from the world of the internal combustion engine to the world of the electric motor and we are moving from petrol to batteries".
"The last time there was a revolution, the computer revolution, the Congress government looked at the revolution and decided that we are going to focus on the development software. We rode the wave of that revolution. Today you can see the results," he said.
Gandhi said four technologies driving change in mobility are -- electric motors, batteries, optics, application of Aritificial Intelligence (AI).
"AI on its own is absolutely meaningless, as it operates on top of data. In India, consumption data is owned by the US through companies such as Google, Facebook, and Instagram," he said.
He said China has a 10-year lead over India in terms of the revolution.
"Our president's address will say to youngsters, we will choose critical areas in each one of these technologies and we will start to build capabilities in those areas. We would ensure our banking system is not captured by 2-3 companies, our banking system is open, dynamic and accessible to small and medium businesses," he said.
"Today, we have the Chinese (on our land) but the Prime Minister has denied it, the Army disagreed with the Prime Minister," he said, to strong protests from the treasury benches.
"The PM has denied that Chinese forces are inside our territory but for some reason our army keeps talking to the Chinese about their entry into our territory and our chief of army staff has said that the Chinese are inside our territory," he said.
Gandhi claimed the reason China is inside this country is because 'Make in India' has failed and India is refusing to produce. "I am worried that India is going to give up this revolution to the Chinese once again," he said.
He also said a Congress government have conducted a Caste Census in Telangana, and the findings are shocking.
Almost 90 percent of Telangana's population is constituted by Dalits, Adivasis, Backward Classes, or minorities, he said, adding that he is sure that the OBC population of this country is at least 50 percent.
"There are two parallel tracks to focus on: firstly, ensuring the participation of OBCs, Adivasis, and Dalits in the country's governance, institutions, and equal distribution of wealth. Secondly, challenging China and participating in the revolution to emerge victorious," Gandhi said.
He asserted the President's address was pretty much the same the year before and the year before that, and it was a laundry list of things that the government has done.
As the world stands on the brink of a technological and economic revolution, India needs a new vision for growth, production, and participation—one that directly addresses our two biggest challenges: the job crisis and the lack of opportunity for 90% of Indians.
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) February 3, 2025
Jobs come from… pic.twitter.com/O4KHNsOWeI
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Sujit Nair raises concerns over speculation of DMK-AIADMK understanding to block TVK
Chennai: Journalist and political commentator Sujit Nair has expressed concern over speculation that the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam could explore a post-poll understanding to prevent Vijay-led Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam from forming the government in Tamil Nadu.
In a social media post, Sujit Nair said the election verdict in Tamil Nadu reflected a clear public demand for political change and argued that the mandate should be respected irrespective of political preferences.
Referring to reports and political discussions surrounding a possible understanding between the DMK and AIADMK, he said he hoped such developments remained only speculative conversations and did not turn into reality.
Nair stated that if such an alliance were to take shape, it would raise serious questions about ideological politics in the country. He said TVK had emerged through a democratic electoral process and that the legitimacy to govern in a parliamentary democracy comes from the people’s verdict.
According to him, attempts to prevent an electoral winner from forming the government through unexpected political arrangements may be constitutionally valid, but many people could view them as politically opportunistic.
He further said that such a move could particularly affect the political image of the DMK, which has historically projected itself around ideology, social justice and opposition politics. Nair said that in ideological terms, the DMK appeared closer to TVK than to the AIADMK, and joining hands with its long-time political rival only to remain in power could weaken its broader political narrative.
He added that the same questions would apply to the AIADMK as well, as the party had spent decades positioning itself against the DMK and such an arrangement could create discomfort among its cadre and supporters.
Drawing a comparison with Maharashtra politics in 2019, Nair said he had expressed similar views when the Shiv Sena formed an alliance with the Indian National Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party after the Assembly elections.
He said post-poll alliances between long-standing political rivals often create a public perception that ideology and electoral mandates become secondary when political power equations come into play.
Nair also said such developments increase public cynicism towards politics and reinforce the belief among voters that ideology is often sidelined after elections.
He maintained that the Tamil Nadu verdict was emphatic and said respecting both the spirit and substance of the mandate was important for the credibility of democratic politics.
