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By PTI
NEW DELHI: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday hit out at Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal for giving a “perverse twist” to the debate on freebies, saying the AAP leader’s comments are an attempt to create fears in the minds of the poor.
A day after Kejriwal joined the debate on freebies calling for a referendum on spending taxpayers’ money on healthcare and education, Sitharaman said that spending on these two has never been called or classified as freebies since Independence and to drag them now into the debate is to give a perverse twist.
“Delhi Chief Minister has given perverse twist to the debate on freebies. Health and education have never been called freebies,” she told reporters here.
“No Indian government has ever denied them since Independence. So, by classifying education and health as freebies, Kerjiwal is trying to bring in a sense of worry and fear in minds of poor,” she said.
In recent days, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has hit out at competitive populism of extending “rewaris” (freebies) which are not just wastage of taxpayers’ money but also an economic disaster that could hamper India’s drive to become Aatmanirbhar (self-reliant).
His comments were seen directed at parties like AAP which have in the run-up to assembly elections in states like Punjab promised free electricity and water, among other things.
Sitharaman said there has to be a genuine debate on the issue and everyone should participate in it.
The BJP Thursday claimed that while the central government’s welfare policies empower different deprived sections of society with targeted schemes, some parties’ engage in ‘revdi’ culture by dishing out freebies for everyone for political gains.
“Revdi culture is about dishing out lollipops for political gains and it makes no transformation to people’s lives. It misuses taxpayers’ money with the rich benefiting at the cost of the poor,” BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla said as he targeted Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal for his counter-offensive after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s denunciation of freebies.
Modi named no one in his speeches but the AAP leader sprang to defend it due to his sense of guilt, Poonawalla told a press conference.
He referred to Kejriwal’s promise of opening 500 new schools and claimed that two two dozen schools were shut in reality and accused him of giving people “free corruption, pollution, advertisements and liquor” instead of free education, water, health and electricity.
Later addressing another press conference, BJP spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia said that Kejriwal has made false allegations against the government.
Bhatia said Kejriwal claims that the government has reduced the MGNREGA budget whereas it was increased by Rs 25,000 crore in the 2021-22 financial year in wake of the Covid pandemic.
At the same time Bhatia said Kejriwal has again lied about state’s share in GST.
The states continue to get 42 per cent of the taxes collected by the Centre, not 29 per cent as claimed by Kejriwal, Bhatia added.
Poonawalla claimed more than 700 of the 1,027 schools the Delhi government runs do not have science and commerce teachers in Class 11 and 12 and over 745 schools have no principal.
Nearly 418 schools have no vice principal and 40,000 seats meant for the economically weaker sections had not been filled according to the RTE act and the court had come down hard on this, he added.
Alleging corruption in the AAP government, Poonawala accused Kejriwal of protecting his ministers Satyendra Jain and Manish Sisodia and Delhi Waqf Board head Amanatullah Khan against graft charges.
He also cited the four CAG reports that were tabled “belatedly” by the AAP government and over which the LG had expressed serious concerns.
Poonawalla alleged that huge corruption and mismanagement had taken place in the Delhi Jal Board.
Tanker mafia was promoted instead and that is why these reports were suppressed, he alleged.
He also accused the Delhi government of insulting “women and sportspersons” by allegedly targeting CWG medal-winner Divya Kakran.
Poonawalla said the AAP social media team trolled Kakran and its leader Saurabh Bharadwaj “insultingly” asked her to show a certificate after she complained about not being given any financial benefits by the Kejriwal government.
He said Kakran then produced a certificate regarding her representing Delhi and alleged that the AAP has a history of insulting those who raise the honour of the national flag whether soldiers or sportspersons.
He asked Kejriwal to sack Bharadwaj from all positions in the party.
NEW DELHI: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday hit out at Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal for giving a “perverse twist” to the debate on freebies, saying the AAP leader’s comments are an attempt to create fears in the minds of the poor.
A day after Kejriwal joined the debate on freebies calling for a referendum on spending taxpayers’ money on healthcare and education, Sitharaman said that spending on these two has never been called or classified as freebies since Independence and to drag them now into the debate is to give a perverse twist.
“Delhi Chief Minister has given perverse twist to the debate on freebies. Health and education have never been called freebies,” she told reporters here.
“No Indian government has ever denied them since Independence. So, by classifying education and health as freebies, Kerjiwal is trying to bring in a sense of worry and fear in minds of poor,” she said.
In recent days, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has hit out at competitive populism of extending “rewaris” (freebies) which are not just wastage of taxpayers’ money but also an economic disaster that could hamper India’s drive to become Aatmanirbhar (self-reliant).
His comments were seen directed at parties like AAP which have in the run-up to assembly elections in states like Punjab promised free electricity and water, among other things.
Sitharaman said there has to be a genuine debate on the issue and everyone should participate in it.
The BJP Thursday claimed that while the central government’s welfare policies empower different deprived sections of society with targeted schemes, some parties’ engage in ‘revdi’ culture by dishing out freebies for everyone for political gains.
“Revdi culture is about dishing out lollipops for political gains and it makes no transformation to people’s lives. It misuses taxpayers’ money with the rich benefiting at the cost of the poor,” BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla said as he targeted Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal for his counter-offensive after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s denunciation of freebies.
Modi named no one in his speeches but the AAP leader sprang to defend it due to his sense of guilt, Poonawalla told a press conference.
He referred to Kejriwal’s promise of opening 500 new schools and claimed that two two dozen schools were shut in reality and accused him of giving people “free corruption, pollution, advertisements and liquor” instead of free education, water, health and electricity.
Later addressing another press conference, BJP spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia said that Kejriwal has made false allegations against the government.
Bhatia said Kejriwal claims that the government has reduced the MGNREGA budget whereas it was increased by Rs 25,000 crore in the 2021-22 financial year in wake of the Covid pandemic.
At the same time Bhatia said Kejriwal has again lied about state’s share in GST.
The states continue to get 42 per cent of the taxes collected by the Centre, not 29 per cent as claimed by Kejriwal, Bhatia added.
Poonawalla claimed more than 700 of the 1,027 schools the Delhi government runs do not have science and commerce teachers in Class 11 and 12 and over 745 schools have no principal.
Nearly 418 schools have no vice principal and 40,000 seats meant for the economically weaker sections had not been filled according to the RTE act and the court had come down hard on this, he added.
Alleging corruption in the AAP government, Poonawala accused Kejriwal of protecting his ministers Satyendra Jain and Manish Sisodia and Delhi Waqf Board head Amanatullah Khan against graft charges.
He also cited the four CAG reports that were tabled “belatedly” by the AAP government and over which the LG had expressed serious concerns.
Poonawalla alleged that huge corruption and mismanagement had taken place in the Delhi Jal Board.
Tanker mafia was promoted instead and that is why these reports were suppressed, he alleged.
He also accused the Delhi government of insulting “women and sportspersons” by allegedly targeting CWG medal-winner Divya Kakran.
Poonawalla said the AAP social media team trolled Kakran and its leader Saurabh Bharadwaj “insultingly” asked her to show a certificate after she complained about not being given any financial benefits by the Kejriwal government.
He said Kakran then produced a certificate regarding her representing Delhi and alleged that the AAP has a history of insulting those who raise the honour of the national flag whether soldiers or sportspersons.
He asked Kejriwal to sack Bharadwaj from all positions in the party.
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