Modi leading Gujarat to bankruptcy: Modhwadia

Ahmedabad, Jun 30 (UNI) Leader of the Opposition in Gujarat Assembly Arjunbhai Modhwadia today refuted Chief Minister Narendra Modi's recent statement in Kutch that the previous chief ministers of the State had left behind huge burden of debt on the State exchequer.

In a release here today, Mr Modhwadia said when Congress party handed the reins of power, the debt stood at Rs 12,000 crores.

When Keshubhai became the chief minister, the debt was Rs 22,000 crore. Despite many large scale calamities in the State during Keshubhai's tenure, like three major cyclones, drought, and earthquake, the debt he left behind was only Rs 32,000 crores, Mr Modhwadia said.

However, when Mr Modi took over, the debt snowballed from Rs 32,000 crore to a whopping Rs 90,000 crore. ''He has made a big hole in the coffers of the state treasury,'' Mr Modhwadia said adding that this means every child who is now born in the State will be carrying a debt burden of Rs 17,000 on his head.

He said in Mr Modi's rule, there has hardly been any economic development worth mentioning. Yet he has been misusing the public money on printing his posters and photos in large numbers and distributing CDs.

In his five-year rule, all that Mr Modi did was Patangotsav, Navratri Mahotsav and other Mahotsavs where only dancing and singing was indulged, without the people of Gujarat getting anything out of it.

These extravaganzas has costed the state so much so that out of an annual budget of Rs 42,000 crore, Rs 10,000 crore is spent on servicing the debt. This money is the hard-earned money of the people of Gujarat that is now needlessly going in for servicing the debt, Mr Modhwadia said adding that every year new debt of Rs 15,000 to Rs 20,000 crores is accruing.

Instead of pulling down Chief ministers before his rein, Mr Modi can do well if he stops draining the state treasury by his antics, Mr Modhwadia said. This in itself would be an immense help to the people of the State, he added.

UNI