The Hindu : Congress derides BJP's development plank

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Jan 14, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Congress derides BJP's development plank

By Our Special Correspondent

HYDERABAD, JAN. 13. The Congress on Tuesday challenged the Bharatiya Janata Party claim of development stating that both public and private sector investments had seen a downward swing in the last five years.

Addressing a press conference, the Pradesh Congress Committee chief spokesperson, K. Rosaiah, said the question of `A.B. Vajpayee versus who' would apply more to the BJP than to the Opposition as the very National Democratic Alliance would collapse the moment Mr. Vajpayee was replaced. The BJP could not go on endlessly on the strength of `Vajpayee factor' without taking credit for the developmental benefits accrued to the country under the previous Congress regimes. It was not the Congress that was pursuing unholy alliances but the BJP which had thrown away the strong secular basis to winds and was pursuing `anti-people' policies, he said.

Mr. Rosaiah said the country had progressed from a foodgrains shortage position to a surplus stock level, primarily because of the irrigation facilities created under the visionary leadership of Jawaharlal Nehru, and later due to the green revolution ushered in by the Indira Gandhi regime.

The boost given to the big industry in the form of establishment of public sector units and the infrastructure created for the development of small industry had helped people secure employment. Productivity had gone up tremendously under the Congress rule. Likewise the contribution towards major power projects helped the country achieve great strides in all sectors, he said.

Sadly all those areas were facing a decline due to the `non-performing' NDA Government being at the helm whose only priority was converting all its allies into pro-Hindutva forces slowly. The way the NDA allies were hobnobbing with the BJP leadership overtly was an indication of those parties, too, acquiring communal tones, he regretted.

The `feel-good factor' was a mirage, he said. Referring to the criticism that the Congress changed its leaders often, he said it was ironical that the Opposition which installed seven Prime Ministers in 12 years talk about the Congress which had five Prime Ministers during its long stint.

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Andhra Pradesh