Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi, on Thursday, launched a scathing attack on the Narendra Modi government, charging it with firing “a double tap at the heart of our economy”, with its decisions on demonetisation and Goods and Services Tax (GST), remarking that the people did not trust the present regime.
Making a speech before the business community in the national capital this evening, Rahul said business thrives with trust. However, “the truth is, trust in this government is dead,” he said in his valedictory address at the 112th annual session of the PHD Chambers of Commerce and Industry.
“Trust goes two ways—the government does not believe in its people and now, after three years, the people have withdrawn their trust in this government,” he said.
Rahul charged the Modi government with playing havoc with the economy of the country with its decision of demonetisation and its implementation of a “flawed” and “complicated” GST.
“The Prime Minister failed to grasp a basic concept of Indian economy—all cash is not black and all black is not cash,” he said.
Demonetisation, he said, crippled small and medium scale enterprises, destroyed the unorganised sector, and rendered millions unemployed. “...to do all that you surely need someone with a big chest, but a very small heart.”
And GST, or "Gabbar Singh Tax", as he termed it, evoking laughter from the audience, “is so badly conceptualised, it is only adding to the distrust.”
The tax regime, as implemented, is wrecked with holes, moth-eaten, flawed in its structure, punitive in its design, and it is forcing businesses to incur massive transaction costs that are destroying SMEs, he said.
“It is creating a 21st century computerised and connected licence raj,” Rahul said, terming it as a tsunami of tax terrorism.
Unsparing on Finance Minister Arun Jaitley too, Rahul said that while the SMEs were screaming in pain, Jaitley “has the nerve to go on TV every other day and tell people that things are just fine.”
The way the Modi regime is working, he said, it has led to “a double tap killing of the Indian economy.” He explained: “Commandos in hostage situations fire what is called a double tap, two quick, closely placed shots fired at the chest to ensure that their terrorist target is dead.”
Rahul, who has of late been regularly attacking the Modi government over its handling of the economy, said it was working to destroy SMEs, which are the driving force when it comes to creating jobs.
China, he said, is creating 50,000 jobs a day to India's 450 per day. “...the only force capable of meeting the Chinese challenge is this network of small, micro and medium businesses. Nobody else can do this job.”
