LUCKNOW: BJP president Amit Shah dared the opposition leaders including Congress chief Rahul Gandhi and National Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar to have a factual debate over the works done for the benefit of farmers by Modi government in five years and those done by the previous governments including the Congress which had ruled the country for a long period.
Shah was speaking at the two-day BJP Kisan Morcha National Convention in Gorakhpur on Saturday. Hitting out at the opposition, led by the Congress, for accusing the Modi government of neglecting the farmers, the BJP national president claimed that no government had done during the last seven decades what Modi government did during the last five years.
He ever charged the Congress chief with spreading lied and misinformation. “He spreads a canard against Modi government, he presents a bundle of lies and you all listen to him instead of responding,” said Shah.
“I challenge whosoever wants to have a debate on the minimum support price given by the Modi government can do it with facts. No other government has done more for farmers than the Narendra Modi government,” said Shah.
Shah counted on steps taken in favour of farmers’ community by the BJP-led NDA government during its regime by mentioning that an MSP one-and-a-half times the production cost was ensured to the farmers for most of their crops.
“We have gone by the recommendations of Swaminathan Commission report unlike any other previous government. And, in case of lacuna, PM Modi is open to listen to the issues and resolve them,” he assured the leaders of the party’s farmers’ wing.
“The government led by PM Modi has been the only one which has tried to double the income of country’s farmers scientifically,” said Shah mentioning the measures like Neem coating and others.
Shah claimed that under the previous Congress-led government the benefits of the farm loan waiver reached only 13 per cent farmers while the PM Kisan rolled out by the Modi government would benefit 90 per cent farmers.
Referring to the Pulwama terror attack, the BJP chief sought to re-assure the countrymen that the supreme sacrifice of the 44 martyrs would not go waste. “BJP follows the policy of zero-tolerance to terror. I assure you all that the loss of lives in Pulwama would be avenged,” he said.
This was the second rally of the day where Shah targeted the Congress party over farm loan issue. Earlier at another rally in state capital Lucknow, Shah attacked Congress and accused its chief of making false promises in three election-bound states last year.
“They had promised a loan waiver of Rs 48,000 crore in Karnataka but only Rs 1,800 crore of loans were waived off. We have done and shown in Uttar Pradesh,” said Shah while addressing cooperative workers at the Sahkarita Sammelan organised by the BJP. The BJP president also attacked SP-BSP “ mahagathbandhan ” calling it a hogwash which was clinched by the arch rivals to ensure their political survival.