Wrong policies, corruption responsible for price rise: BJP

Dibrugarh (Assam), Feb 8 (PTI) BJP today blamed the UPAfor its "wrong" economic policies and corruption, leading tosteep price rise and said Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has toanswer for this.

"The UPA has been voted to power twice. They have notonly failed to fulfil the promises made but also indulged incorruption leading to price rise. There is anger in the heartsof the people," BJP president Nitin Gadkari told a party rallyhere.

He said the Supreme Court had directed the Congressgovernment to disclose the names of those having accounts inforeign banks but it refrained, saying it was not in thenational interest.

"We fail to understand how revealing the names of those,who have cheated the poor of the country by avoiding to paydifferent taxes and have stashed the black money in foreignbanks, is against the country''s interest," he said.

Actually, if their names are out, the faces of several"Congress leader will be blackened", he claimed.

A Planning Commission report has pointed out thatnearly 90 per cent of the country''s population earns less thanRs 20 a day while another section earns Rs two crore a daythrough corruption.

"Living for the common people has become very difficult.

Price rise has led to suicides, unemployment and this is notrelated to anybody''s caste, religion or language. How will thepoor survive in such a situation?" Gadkari asked.

He said the country has witnessed a series of scamsinvolving the Congress and its allies.

"Starting from the Bofors, the Congress has moved on tolarge-scale scams like the Rs 70,000 crore Commonwealth Gamesscam and the Rs 1,76,000 crore 2G Spectrum scam. This, inturn, has led to unprecedente d rise in prices causing untoldhardship to the common people for which the Prime Minister isanswerable to the nation," he said.

The Congress claims its mission is ''Garibi Hatao''(poverty eradication) but whose ''Garibi'' has it succeeded inremoving. Statistics prove that the rich have become richerand the poor poorer, he said.

Gadkari alleged that the poverty of common Hindu orMuslim, Adivasi or Vanvasi people has not been removed. It israther the Congress leaders and workers who have becomericher.

He said the Congress government at the Centre alone wasnot indulging in corrupt practices. The Assam governmentheaded by the party too was doing the same "and there is along list of scams to prove that it is following the same pathas the Congress at the Centre".

Former Asom Gana Parishad MP Sarbananda Sonowal joinedthe party at the rally.