New Delhi, April 14: Blaming the BJP for politicisation of Unnao and Kathau rape cases, the Congress on Saturday attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for speaking very little on the incidents and not mention the involvement of his own party's people.
It also attacked the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) for always trying to erode the legacy of B.R. Ambedkar.
"Prime Minister's speech yesterday (Friday) reeked of politicisation of everything, and blaming the Congress of everything as if the world came into existence in 2014..as if they had started from the scratch.
"PM yesterday broke his silence after protests across the country and that too in just two lines. But he didn't mention that his own people are involved in the cases. The BJP MLA or ministers. The resignation of ministers is just a joke. They gave it to their own party," said senior Congress leader Kumari Selja.
Noting BJP leaders had asked if such incidents have not taken place during Congress' rule, mentioning the Nirbhaya case, she said: "But they (BJP) forget that everyone stood against it that time. There was no politics in it..."
On the RSS and the BJP's view of Ambedkar, she said: "We all know about RSS ideologues' views on Baba Saheb and the Dalits. The Congress had given him the responsibility to draft the India's Constitution."
"The RSS and the BJP even talked about changing the Constitution, questioned reservation. Is this how they show respect to Baba Saheb?
"Simply paying lip service, which the Prime Minister is used to, does not take away from the fact that they are always trying to erode the legacy of Baba Saheb Ambedkar," she added.
Congress also hit out at the government for reducing the sub-plan for SC/ST, and nearly halving the budget for SC schemes.
"Just speeches and words can't fulfill the promises they made to SC and STs. According to NCRB, each day 6 Dalit women get raped...
"Babasaheb's statue have been put in a cage in (Uttar Pradesh's) Badaun. Actually, it is very symbolic as they have put his ideology in a cage," said Selja.
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Criticism of PM Modi, repeated mentions of guarantees to be highlights of K’taka Budget: LoP Ashoka
Bengaluru (PTI): Leader of Opposition in the Karnataka Assembly R Ashoka on Thursday took a dig at CM Siddaramaiah ahead of the state Budget presentation, claiming that the government is expected to borrow Rs 1.15 lakh crore and is likely to impose fresh taxes on the people.
He said the Budget would have nothing new, adding that its highlights would be criticism of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and repeated mentions of the five guarantee schemes ('Shakti', 'Gruha Lakshmi', 'Gruha Jyoti, 'Yuva Nidhi' and 'Anna Bhagya').
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, who also holds the Finance portfolio, is scheduled to present the 2026–27 Budget on March 6. This will be his record 17th budget.
“Siddaramaiah-led Congress government’s budget will be presented tomorrow. While Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman reduced the tax burden in the Union Budget, Siddaramaiah is known for imposing taxes on people. He imposes about four taxes a month and has already introduced 36 taxes, and is now looking for ways to impose more,” Ashoka said.
Speaking to reporters, he said the Congress had promised people before coming to power that the guarantee schemes would be implemented without imposing any burden on them.
“By the end of the chief minister’s term, the state’s total debt will probably exceed Rs 6 lakh crore. The government has already breached financial discipline. Siddaramaiah and his government are somehow managing the situation,” Ashoka claimed, adding that his borrowings as CM equal those of 12 or 13 former chief ministers combined.
Stating that the Budget should create higher revenue sources, ensure that no burden is placed on people, and take the state away from debt, the opposition leader said this could be ensured only by a “clever and intelligent finance minister.”
“Anyone can run a government by pushing the state into debt,” he said, accusing Siddaramaiah of “increasing the state’s debt and failing to meet the expectations of the people.”
Highlighting that Siddaramaiah blames the previous BJP government for everything, Ashoka said Basavaraj Bommai, the chief minister during the previous BJP government, had presented a “surplus budget,” without excessive borrowings.
“Despite having the opportunity to borrow more while staying within the parameters of financial discipline, he (Bommai) did not do so, as it would burden the people,” he said, accusing Siddaramaiah of borrowing crores of rupees every year.
“I feel that this time too, he will take a loan of Rs 1.15 lakh crore,” he claimed.
The BJP leader said he had written to the CM requesting an allocation of Rs 15,000 crore annually for the development of backward taluks, as recommended by the High Power Committee on Redressal of Regional Imbalance (HPCRRI), chaired by economist Prof M Govinda Rao.
Claiming that the government appears “inactive” due to internal rifts, Ashoka pointed to an ongoing power struggle between factions led by Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar over the CM’s post.
“Amid all this, we cannot expect anything new from this Budget. The CM will repeatedly speak about the guarantee schemes and target the central government and PM Modi. Criticising Modi and repeated mentions of the five guarantee schemes will be the highlight of this Budget. Other than that, there will be nothing new,” he added.
He also dismissed the CM's claim that the government had achieved 90 per cent of the promises made in the previous Budget. “The fact is that not even 9 per cent has been achieved. I have evidence for it,” he said.
Ashoka further alleged that the government had also failed in tax collection, achieving only 48 per cent of the target, and had released less than 40 per cent of the allocated funds to some departments.
