Modi government pushed India into debt, not Congress: Minister Santosh Lad
Mangaluru: Karnataka Labour Minister Santosh Lad on Friday launched a sharp attack on the Narendra Modi-led central government, accusing it of pushing India into massive debt during the last decade.
Addressing Congress workers at the Congress Bhavan in Mallikatte, Mangaluru, Lad said, “Till 2014, India’s total debt stood at ₹53 lakh crore. But in the ten years since Narendra Modi became Prime Minister, the country’s debt has risen to ₹185 lakh crore. The Modi government is responsible for bankrupting the nation, not us.”
Criticising the BJP’s election campaign style, Lad alleged that the party never speaks about development or governance, instead focusing on Pakistan, Muslims, and Afghanistan to divert public attention.
He further said, “Rahul Gandhi has held more than a thousand press conferences so far. When leaders from other countries visit abroad, they always face the press. But Prime Minister Modi has not held even one press conference in a month during his entire tenure.”
Lad also accused the BJP government of using public money for electoral gains, alleging that funds meant for Bihar’s development were being deposited into women’s bank accounts ahead of the elections.
Speaking about Congress’s future, the minister stressed the need to promote young leaders who believe in the ideals of Basavanna, Buddha, Ambedkar, and the Congress philosophy. “We must identify and promote such youths. Those who can speak boldly from the stage should be brought to the forefront,” he said.
Highlighting labour welfare initiatives in Karnataka, Lad said around 40 lakh unorganised workers in sectors like private trade and transport have been brought under the Karnataka Motor Transport and Other Allied Workers’ Social Security and Welfare Act. He said the state government has also formed a Social Security and Welfare Board to implement social protection schemes for workers.
Congress leaders Suresh Ballal, Padmaraj Poojary, Sadashiva Ullal, T.M. Shaheed, M.A. Gafoor, Lavanya Ballal, Mamata Gatti, and Anil Tadkal were present at the event.
Dakshina Kannada District Congress Committee president K. Harish Kumar welcomed the gathering, while former Mayor Shashidhar Hegde proposed the vote of thanks.
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Ex-minister Ramanath Rai hits out at BJP leader Ashoka for ‘irresponsible’ comments on KC Venugopal
Mangaluru: Congress leader and former minister B Ramanath Rai slammed BJP leader R Ashoka for calling AICC General Secretary KC Venugopal an agent of the party high command, and asked if the general secretary and other office-bearers in the BJP were commission agents too.
Rai, who addressed a press meet at the Congress office in the city on Friday, expressed fury over the recent comments of the BJP leader that Chief Minister Siddaramaiah was presenting himself in a shameless manner in public life. Ashoka, who is also Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in the Karnataka Legislative Assembly, had said that the Congress government had ‘broken every previous record on corruption-related controversies’.
“Ashoka has spoken with sheer ignorance and displays his lack of maturity, as he often does while facing the media. KC Venugopal has been working at organization of the party and it is unbecoming of Ashoka to criticize Venugopal as he did,” Rai told reporters.
“Being in a responsible position, how acceptable is it for Ashoka to pass disrespectful, random comments about another leader who also holds a responsible position? If KC Venugopal is indeed an agent of the party high command, what should we consider BJP leaders to be? Are they brokers?” he asked
Commenting on Ashoka’s allegations of corruption in the Congress government in Karnataka, Rai pointed out, “The KSRTC land was sold to private parties when he (Ashoka) was transport minister. We can find several such cases across the state, which need to be probed.”
The former minister, however, refused to comment on the incident that occurred at Mangaluru airport during CM Siddaramaiah’s visit to the city recently.
Former mayors Ashraf and Shashidhar Hegde, Congress activists Vishwas Kumar Das, Subhodaya Alva, Shabeer, Baby Kundar, Padmanabha, Nazeer Bajal and Prem were present.
