New Delhi: Congress along with other opposition parties today targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi over remarks that he was working with “good intention” to address farmers' woes, saying his actions do not back his claim and dared him to waive farmers' loans.
“UPA had waived loan of farmers worth Rs 72,000 crore. Modi ji can you show the courage of waiving the loans of farmers,” Congress leader Digvijay Singh tweeted. Senior party leader Ahmed Patel said the government's actions belie its claims.
“RTI cases are piling, govt has neither appointed CIC/IC or operationalised the Whistleblowers Act. This is neeti & niyat to fight corruption?,” he said on Twitter. JD(U) said that instead of talking of “intent alone”, the government should come out with a clear road map and spell out its policy prescription to remove poverty, create employment and provide succour to farmers.
Attacking the Prime Minister over his remarks, JD(U) President Sharad Yadav alleged that the NDA dispensation was only “selling dreams” and has “no policy or programme”.
“Policy is more important than intention. All governments have an intention to do public good. The issue is that whether the government has some policy and programmes to fulfil it not. This government has no roadmap, no policy and programme. Mere intention will not do any good to farmers,” Yadav said.
He said,”What is the worth of intention if it is not backed by concrete policy and programmes. Results come only when policy and intent both combine. This government completely lacks on policy front. The government had promised to create two crore jobs. It sold many such dreams. But none of them were fulfilled.”
Yadav was reacting to the Prime Minister's remarks yesterday attacking opposition for “spreading lies” that the government was working against the interests of the farming community.
Facing attack over the new Land Acquisition Bill, Modi had contended in a public meeting in Bengaluru that he had lived among the farmers and he could understand their plight and was working with “good intention” to address their woes. Digvijay Singh also targeted Modi on the issue of adverse impact of hailstorm on farmers.
“Modiji when prices of oil came down, you claimed it happened due to your good luck. Now there is hailstorm on the crop of farmers. Is it also due to your luck?,” he asked on Twitter.
In other tweets, he mocked Modi with a parody of slogans. “Subhash Chandra Bose- tum mujhe khoon do, main tumhe azadi doonga: Modi- tum mujhe jameen do, main tumhe berojgari doonga. Modi: Tum mujhe subsidy do, Main Ameeron ki tax kam Kar doonga. “ (Subhash Chandra Bose told people that he would give them freedom, if they give their blood, Modi is telling the farmers that they should give him their land and he would give them unemployement. You give up subsidy, I will reduce taxes on the rich.)
Singh said the good days promised by Modi government have come but “for whom? For the pair of two swans of Gujarat.” Quoting Ahmed Patel's remarks at a public meeting, Singh said that farmers used to say before the county got freedom that “sarfaroshi ki Tamanna ab hamare dil me hai” (We wish to do or die for the nation).
“Ab Modi ke rajya me Kisan kah raha hai Khudkushi ki Tamanna ab hamare dil me hai. (Now under Modi's rule, farmers are saying that the thought of committing suicide is on their mind)”.
