The Hindu : National : BJP stir against rising prices

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Feb 14, 2007
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National

National

BJP stir against rising prices

Special Correspondent

Use issue to gain electoral advantage, Rajnath Singh exhorts cadres

— Photo: S. Subramanium

NOVEL PROTEST: BJP president Rajnath Singh flagging off a campaign against price rise in New Delhi on Tuesday.

NEW DELHI: The Bharatiya Janata Party on Tuesday started a week-long agitation in several parts of the country to protest the rise in prices of essential commodities.

Six floats

In Delhi BJP president Rajnath Singh flagged off six floats at the party headquarters depicting the upward movement of prices of foodgrains, sugar and pulses since the United Progressive Alliance government took office.

`Chautarpha mehngai maar, aam admi hai lachar' (with prices soaring all around the common man is helpless) read one of the slogans on the floats that will move around the capital for the next seven days.

"Similar agitations will also take place in other cities," party spokesperson Siddhartha Nath Singh said.

Mr. Rajnath Singh said the National Democratic Alliance government led by Atal Bihari Vajpayee had contained inflation for six years by keeping a constant watch over the prices of essential items. There was no shortage of cooking gas.

The UPA Government had betrayed the common man by allowing prices to soar. The prices of food items used daily were especially high, well above the over six per cent inflation rate.

Allegation

He demanded a white paper on the issue and wanted the government to explain why it has not been able to control inflation "although we have an economist as Prime Minister."

He alleged the Congress had links with black-marketeers and hoarders.

Mr. Singh hoped the BJP workers would use the issue effectively so that "whenever" and "wherever" elections took place they might succeed in ousting the Congress and its allies.

The party has been demanding an end to forward trading of essential commodities to prevent speculation fuelling prices. It has also demanded a high-power committee to review the situation on a weekly basis and recommend steps to check inflation.

In the ongoing Assembly elections the BJP has targeted the ruling Congress in Punjab and Uttarakhand on the price rise issue.

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