A file photo of senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh
| Photo Credit: SHIV KUMAR PUSHPAKAR
Stepping up its attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his ‘redistribution of wealth’ remark, the Congress has said that Mr. Modi will not tell the people that more than 40% of the wealth created in the country from 2012 to 2021 has gone to 1% of the population, and asserted that only an INDIA bloc government can deliver a vastly more inclusive economic growth.
At a rally in Rajasthan on April 21, Mr. Modi had said that if the Congress came to power, it would redistribute the wealth of people to “infiltrators” and those who have more children, and cited former PM Manmohan Singh’s remark that the minority community had the first claim on the country’s resources.
The Congress has hit back at Mr. Modi over his remarks targeting the party, saying after facing “disappointment” in the first phase of Lok Sabha polls, the PM has now resorted to “lies” and “hate speech” to divert people from the real issues.
Also read: PM has new tactics for diverting attention from real issues: Rahul Gandhi on Modi’s ‘redistribution of wealth’ remarks
Wealth inequality in India
In a post on social media platform x, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said, “The Prime Minister will never tell you that: More than 40% of the wealth created in the country from 2012 to 2021 has gone to just 1% of the population.” Approximately 64% of the total goods and services tax (GST) comes from the poor, the lower middle classes, and the middle classes, he said.
Also read: We will put as much money in the hands of people as the Modi government has given to billionaires, says Rahul in Rajasthan
“Most of the public assets and resources sold in the last ten years have gone to one or two companies – economists have shown that the growing monopolisation of the economy has led to higher inflation,” he alleged. Today, 21 billionaires combined have more wealth than 70 crore Indians, he said.
“India needs faster economic growth. India needs vastly more inclusive economic growth. India needs hugely more ecologically sustainable growth. Only INDIA can and will deliver this triad,” Mr. Ramesh asserted.
