Sangrur, May 19
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Tuesday tore into the Narendra Modi-led Union government over its handling of the Gulf war situation, saying the Centre is using the conflict as a shield to hide the complete collapse of its foreign and economic policies while pushing the country towards an undeclared lockdown-like situation. Questioning the Centre’s repeated appeals for austerity and restraint, Mann said no other country affected by the global crisis has asked its citizens to stop buying petrol, diesel, gas or gold, adding that the Modi government owes the nation answers on the actual status of India’s reserves instead of spreading panic and inconvenience.
Targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his foreign policy, Mann said the same leadership that once claimed India would become a “Vishav Guru” has reduced the country to a “Vishav Chela,” while pointing out that the Prime Minister’s foreign visits have yielded little for ordinary Indians except benefits for a handful of favoured industrialists who accompany him abroad for business deals.
Interacting with media persons on the sidelines of launching an ambitious project to put high-tension wires underground, Mann said the Modi government has completely failed on both foreign and economic policy fronts, due to which the country is in disarray. “The Modi government has completely failed on Foreign and economic policy due to which the country is in disarray. The Union government failed to anticipate the gravity of the situation arising out of the Gulf war, leading to complete chaos in the country,” he added.
The Chief Minister pointed out, “It is ironic that the war has taken place between Israel and Iran but only India is suffering whereas the situation is not so grim in any other neighboring country.” The Chief Minister further said that the country cannot be run in such an irresponsible manner where the Prime Minister urges people to observe austerity measures while himself indulging in opulence. “The Prime Minister continues his foreign sojourns while appealing to the countrymen to refrain from it. In the last 14 years, the Prime Minister has never briefed the media, country or Parliament about the outcome of his several foreign trips,” he added.
