Bengaluru: Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has charged that the Modi government has destroyed the developments achieved by the UPA government in four years.

Speaking to reporters today in Bengaluru, Singh said the Modi led NDA government did not handle the economy properly.

"Prime Minister Modi hasn't held a single press conference in the last four years. That itself is a reflection of the state of affairs," the former prime minister remarked.

"Our nation today is experiencing difficult times. Our farmers are facing an acute crisis, our aspirational youth are not finding opportunities, and the economy is growing below its potential," Singh said. He said the "unfortunate truth" was that each of these crises was "entirely avoidable".

“It is shocking that a prime minister stoops so low and uses such language and phraseology which is unbecoming of a prime minister, particularly when he is in a state where elections are taking place. No prime minister has used election time to say things in manner that Modiji has been trying. I sincerely hope he will now learn a lesson and not seek to polarise the society," Mr. Singh added.

When asked about various issues, the Prime Minister blames 70 years of Congress rule. He has forgotten the Green Revolution and have forgotten the UPA government’s policies that have brought millions of people out of poverty, “Mr. Singh said.

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Kochi (Kerala) (PTI): Police on Sunday arrested three directors of a firm accused of cheating hundreds of investors of over Rs 100 crore through a fake investment scheme linked to agricultural tourism here, officials said.

The accused were identified as Muraleedharan, Ashik Murali and Akhil Murali, all natives of Thrissur.

The arrests were made by the Kalamassery police in connection with a fraud involving ATCOS (Agri Tourism Cooperative Society), a firm headquartered at Pathadipalam here.

Police said the company had promised high returns by collecting investments from the public in the agricultural tourism sector, but allegedly cheated hundreds of people and fled with the money.

ATCOS was registered under the Multi-State Cooperative Societies Act and operated 13 branches across various districts in Kerala, besides a branch in Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu, officials said.

When investors failed to receive their promised returns or the invested amount, complaints were filed with the police.

Officials said around 54 cases have been registered against the firm in 32 police stations across the state, including 29 cases at the Kalamassery police station alone.

Following instructions from Kochi City Police Commissioner K S Mahesh Kumar, a special investigation team was formed under the supervision of Deputy Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) Shehensha and Thrikkakara ACP Manoj Kumar.

The team traced the accused to an apartment in Amala Nagar in Thrissur, where they had been hiding after secretly renting the flat, officials said.

The bank accounts of the accused have been frozen, and steps have been initiated to trace their assets, officials said.

Police also conducted a raid at the company’s office at Pathadipalam and seized several documents related to the case.

The accused were produced before the Judicial First Class Magistrate Court in Kalamassery, which remanded them to judicial custody and sent them to Kakkanad jail.

Police said they would seek the custody of the accused for further interrogation as the investigation continues.