Ahmedabad, Aug 15 (IBNS): Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday termed Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s Independence Day speech as disappointing and questioned his silence on the recent Mumbai violence.
Accusing the Prime Minister of adopting "double standards" with regard to incidents in Assam and Mumbai, Modi questioned why Singh had expressed remorse at the incident in the northeastern state but remained silent on the violence in India’s financial capital.
“Why the Prime Minister has remained silent on the violence in Mumbai, while he expressed remorse on the violent protests in Assam? Why this double standards ? How can a Prime Minister of a country be mum on such a serious incident,” he said.
Modi also asked him to clarify his government's policy on the issue of illegal Bangladeshi infiltrators who have been blamed for the violence in Assam between the settlers and the indigenous Bodo community that has left more than 70 people dead..
"The infiltration of Bangladeshis in India is becoming an issue of concern. Assam (violence) is just a small example of it becoming a major problem for the nation.
“Prime Minister, the country wants to know what are you thinking about Bangladeshi infiltration. What are your policies? Will Bangladeshis have a sway in India," the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader said.
Modi, who has been touted as one of the hopefuls for the post of Prime Minister in the 2014 elections, said that he heard the Prime Minister's speech not as a chief minister but as a common man and was disappointed.
"What happened to the promises of cheap interest rates for the middle class people to build houses or the cheap education loans," he asked, also voicing concern on the purported absence of a government plan to tackle malnutrition.
Speaking from the ramparts of the Red Fort on Wednesday, Prime Minister Singh said that a lack political consensus was hurting India’s economic growth and the time had come to take up development processes as matters of national security.
Addressing the nation on the occasion of 66th Independence Day, Singh vowed to battle corruption - an issue that has triggered a string of protests - while ensuring that sincere officials were not affected by baseless allegations of wrongdoing.
The economist-turned-politician said that even though India cannot escape the global economic crisis, the country's gross domestic growth (GDP) growth would still be "a little better" than last year's 6.5 percent.
He said the government will leave no stone unturned to encourage investment in the country so that entrepreneurs can make a substantial contribution to the economy.
Referring to Assam, where ethnic violence between indigenous tribes and Muslim settlers have claimed over 70 lives, he said authorities were doing everything possible to provide relief to everyone.
Reaching for Aakash ?
Yes , Mr Prime Minister
You can deliver on your promises , by distributing Aakash2 tablets ( being developed by IIT- Bombay ) to 20 Crore Indians who have registered for Aadhar Identification so far
In your Independence Day speech , you made following promises – all of which can come true by employing latest software / apps , specified by IIT-B
Before distributing Aakash2 to 20 Crore Aadhar Card-Holders , just ensure that these tablets are integrated / pre-installed with :
“ Aadhar Identification Number “ of Nandan Nilekani
To fulfill your promise :
“ It will be our endeavour to ensure that all households benefit from bank accounts in the next 2 years. “
“ Mobile Wallet “ app of Sam Pitroda
To fulfill your promise :
“ We want to create a system in which money from Government schemes - pension for old people, scholarship for students and wages for labourers - can be credited directly into people's bank accounts. This would reduce inconvenience to the beneficiaries, make it easy for them to receive payment and increase transparency. For this work, we will take help from the Aadhar scheme under which about 20 crore people have been registered so far. “
“ Educational Apps “ of Kapil Sibal ( installed on Aakash2 )
To fulfill your promise :
“ Now we will focus on improving the quality of education. In the next few months we will put in place a system of continuous assessment of the benefit our children are getting from teaching.
We want to create many new job opportunities for our youth in the coming years. To achieve this it is necessary that we train them in skills which our economy needs. It is our endeavour to put in place a system in which training facilities are available in many new skills.
“ My Jobs “ app [ freely downloadable from Google Play ]
To fulfill your promise :
“ I promise that we will work hard for creation of new employment opportunities for our young men and women living in villages and cities “
Mr Prime Minister ,
You have less than 18 months to fulfill your promises before 2014 National Elections
There is no time to waste !
And the best part is :
No need to pass a bill in the Parliament . No need to worry about “ Coalition Dharma “ !
With regards
hemen parekh
Jobs for All = Peace on Earth
