After former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh launched a blistering attack on the BJP-led Centre over its economic and foreign policies, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday targeted the Congress over the security lapses during the 10 years of UPA, reported Hindustan Times.
“Till 10 years, the Sonia-Manmohan Singh government was at the Centre with support from the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and the Samajwadi Party (SP). Often many Alia, Malia, Jamalia used to enter India and behead our soldiers. Yet, the PM couldn't do anything about it,” Shah said at a public rally in Uttar Pradesh’s Rae Bareli.
Speaking about the surgical strikes, the Union Home Minister said they (Opposition) thought the BJP government would also react in the same way as former governments did in the past after the Pulwama attack. "However, Prime Minister Narendra Modi took on the terrorists at their homes by conducting surgical strikes,” he added.
This came after Manmohan Singh on Thursday targeted the Centre on a host of issues, including the farmers' agitation, foreign policy, price rise and unemployment.
According to Singh, the PM Modi-led government had proved to be a "complete failure" on the issue of foreign policy. The Chinese army, he alleged, was occupying "our pious land for the last one year but efforts are being made to bury this issue".
"Our relations with neighbouring nations are also deteriorating," Singh said.
Further targeting the Centre on foreign policy matters, Singh said, "Old friends are constantly alienating from us, while our relations with neighbouring countries are also deteriorating." "I hope that now the ruling dispensation has come to understand that the relations of the countries do not improve by forcefully embracing the leaders, playing on a swing with them or going for uninvited biryani," he said, in a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
With the Congress targeting the Centre saying its governance was visible only in advertisements, Singh said, "The truth somehow always comes to the fore. It is very easy to talk of big things but it is very difficult to put those things into action." He said the government does not have trust in the country's constitution and "institutions are continuously being weakened".
"Today the situation is very worrisome. In the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, the short-sighted policies of the central government, on the one hand, have caused people to suffer from falling economy, rising inflation and unemployment.
"On the other hand, the present government which has been in power for the last seven and a half years, rather than admitting their mistakes and making amends, is still blaming first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru for being responsible for people's problems," Singh said in his video statement.
In a sharp attack, he said, "I clearly believe that the post of prime minister has its own dignity and blaming history cannot reduce one's sins." Hitting out at the central government, Singh, who is a noted economist, said they have no understanding of the economy, which was not in a healthy shape.
"Unemployment has reached its peak in the whole country today. Farmers, businessmen, students, women are all unhappy," he said.
"Social inequality is increasing in the country, the debt on the people is constantly increasing, while the earnings are decreasing," he said.
He further said the rich are becoming richer while the poor are becoming poorer.
"But this government is portraying that everything is fine by manipulating figures," he said.
Singh said there is a flaw in the government's policy as well as its intent.
"In every policy there is selfishness, while in intent there is hatred and division. People are being divided in the name of caste and region for their selfish interests...," he said.
(With PTI inputs)
