Addressing the press on Tuesday, the Wayanad MP accused the government at centre of selling IndiaÂs precious assets. The main focus of the press conference was the ÂAsset Monetisation Plan which was unveiled by the government on Monday.  

The government on Monday launched a 4 year National Monetisation Pipeline which is worth an estimated Rs 6 Lakh crore. The purpose of this plan is to encourage private players by transferring them some rights to operate and generate revenue without solely handing over ownership to them.

Giving a stern warning to the government, Rahul said that the new plan will lead to creation of monopolies and significantly hurt the future employment prospects for the youth. He said the Prime Minister is just working for 2-3 big industrialists and not for the common public.

ÂThe Narendra Modi-led government is in the process of selling IndiaÂs crown jewels built by all the previous governments with public money over 7 decades. I want to tell the youth what the country is selling and which asset is going to whom, Gandhi said at a press conference. The press conference was also attended by senior Congress leader P Chidambaram who  called the plan a ÂScandal and ÂGrand Closing Down SaleÂ.

Scaling up the attack on the Prime Minister, Rahul said, Modi used to say that Congress had done nothing in 70 years but the assets which are now given away as a gift to these few industrialists were created during their regime during the last 70 years.   

Defending the privatization policy of UPA, Gandhi further said, ÂWe are not against privatization but our privatization had a logic. We didnÂt privatize strategic industries and we consider railways a strategic industry because it transports lakhs of common people and also employs lots of people. We were strategically smarter when it comes to privatization as we privatized chronically loss-making industries and the companies which had minimal market share, he added. 

Commenting on Railways, Airports and Ports, Gandhi further said ÂThese are strategically given to private players and the whole country knows in whose hands these assets will land up. He also warned Railway employees of their future. Chidambaram raising the tone of Rahul said ÂThe exercise was done without setting a positive objective and he wondered how can the government go ahead without even consulting the stakeholders like railway unions, port workers etc.

Continue Reading on The India Saga