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BJP contests PC remarks on NDA legacy
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NewsByte on 07 June, 2008 02:06:04
 
BY VENKAT PARSA
NEW DELHI
June 7: Senior BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad has hit out at Union finance
minister P. Chidambaram for his recent remarks that the legacy of the Vajpayee
Government was low growth rate and poor fiscal management. Hotly contesting the
claims of the finance minister, Mr Ravi Shankar Prasad said that though a good
lawyer, Mr Chidambaram failed to do his homework well.
To drive home his point, Mr Prasad quoted from Union finance minister P.
Chidambaram’s first Budget speech on July 8, 2004, when he said, "The economic
fundamentals appear strong and the Balance of Payments (BoP) is robust."
Similarly, the Economic Survey for 2004-05 presented by the Union finance
minister stated, "Buoyed by a rebound in the agriculture and allied sector and
strongly helped by improved performance in industry and services, the economy
has registered a growth rate of 8.5 per cent in 2003-04 the highest ever except
in 1975-76 and 1988-89."
Mr Ravi Shankar Prasad reminded Mr Chidambaram that it was the Congress-led UPA
government track record that was under scrutiny and he cannot get away by
hurling wild and factually incorrect allegations against the Vajpayee government
that demitted office more than four years ago. "Mr Chidambaram cannot escape his
own responsibility for causing a mess of the Indian food economy, rising
inflation and the continued misery of the people," he said.
The hard fact remains, he said, that inspite of the tall claims of the
Congress-led UPA government, there has been consistent mismanagement of the
economy and that is reflected in the rising prices.
"The nearly Rs 30,000 crore impact of the Pay Commission, Rs 71,680 crore
loan-waiver and the impact of the fertiliser bonds worth Rs 100,000 crore are
not being factored into the budgetary deficit and instead are being left to be
dealt by future governments to cloud the deficit statistics," Mr Prasad said.
Mr Ravi Shankar Prasad said it is too well-known that a hostile government like
the Congress-led UPA government would take a very critical view of the
performance of the Vajpayee government. The Economic Survey presented by his own
finance ministry praised the all-round economic growth in various sectors, which
exposes the patent falsehood of Mr Chidambaram’s claims, he said.
Reacting to media reports of Union home minister Shivraj Patil’s son misusing
the home minister’s premises for promoting his business, Mr Prasad said that
Mr Shivraj Patil should come clean on the issue.