‘NPR a tax on poor,’ says Rahul; BJP calls him ‘liar of the year’

NEW DELHI: The BJP on Friday fired a fresh salvo at the Congress after party leader Rahul Gandhi said exercises

like the National Population Register (NPR) and National Register of Citizens (NRC) are a “tax” on the poor people of the country.

Addressing the media, Union minister Prakash Javadekar hit back at Rahul’s comment saying that “tax is a culture of Congress party”.

“If there was a category for the

liar of the year, he (Rahul Gandhi) would be its recipient. His comments used to embarrass his family. His lies now embarrass his party and the entire country,” Javadekar said.

“Today, Rahul said that NPR is a tax on the poor. NPR is a popu

lation register. The information provided by the people is listed in it. From where does tax feature in it? Tax is a culture of the Congress — Jayanti tax, coal tax, 2G tax, Jija ji tax,” Javadekar told reporters.

Earlier in the day, Rahul had slammed the ruling BJP government amid the ongoing debate on the Citizenship Act. He compared the newly introduced Act with demonetisation exercise and claimed that the law is designed to rob the poor and benefit the rich.

“Whether NPR or NRC, it is a tax on poor people of the country. You understand demonetisation. It was a tax on poor people. Go to banks and give your money but do not withdraw money from your account. Entire money went to the pocket of 15-20 rich people. This (NPR or NRC) is the same thing,” Rahul said.