PM making empty promises, has failed to create jobs, says Rahul

All India Congress Committee Vice President Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday charged the NDA government with failing to tackle unemployment and poverty even as he accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of making “empty promises.”

Speaking at a convention organised by the state unit of the Congress in Bengaluru, Rahul charged that instead of discharging his duties as prime minister, Modi is dividing the country, spreading hatred and ignoring the sufferings of the poor.

Rahul, at the well-attended convention held at the National College Grounds, devoted a major part of his speech to target Modi. “Modi allows his party to beat Dalits, kill minorities and he does not say even one word. The prime minister represents the spirit of people of India and it is time Narendra Modi starts acting and operating like one,” he said.

He said Modi’s Independence Day address from the Red Fort on Tuesday was short and lasted just 45 minutes. “Next year it will be 15 minutes because he is running out of things to say”, he said. Rahul then listed out the omissions from Modi’s speech, including increasing unemployment rate, standoff at Doklam, Gorakhpur hospital tragedy.

Rahul said that three years ago Modi had promised that his government will create two crore jobs per year. However, the NDA regime is hardly managing to create one lakh jobs a year. The present unemployment rate in the country was the highest in the last eight years.

The Congress leader charged that it was because of Modi’s healthcare policies 90 babies had died in Gorakhpur. He said the NDA government slashed the healthcare budget, leaving no money for the hospital in Gorakhpur to buy oxygen cylinders. “Modi wants the rich to go private hospitals, while the poor die in government hospitals.”

Jammu and Kashmir

Continuing his tirade against Modi, the Congress leader said the NDA government's Jammu and Kashmir policy has created a space for Pakistan to “misbehave”.

He blamed Modi for undoing the UPA government’s hard work in restoring peace in Jammu and Kashmir. “We worked hard for 10 years to bring peace to Jammu and Kashmir, it was all destroyed in one month by the Modi government,” he said.

On the standoff at Doklam with China, Rahul said, “Some time ago, the Chinese President came to India. While Modi was hugging him, a thousand Chinese soldiers entered our territory. Modi made no mention of it in his Independence Day address.” He also accused Modi of alienating India’s neighbours and also Russia.