Attempts made to mislead people on budget: PM Modi
NEW DELHI: At the meeting of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)’S parliamentary party on Tuesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke out against those who have criticised the Union Budget. Speaking to his party’s members of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, he said attempts have been made to mislead people about the provisions of the budget, which he described as the best budget (possible) under the prevailing global economic scenario.
“Initially, I think a lot of the media didn’t understand the budget,’’ the PM said, according to two MPS present at the meeting who asked not to be named. “But a day later, the assessment was quite good. Even our critics didn’t say much.’’ The initial part of the meeting saw foreign minister S Jaishankar and health minister Harsh Vardhan brief the ministers on the ways India is tackling the coronavirus, a deadly infection that originated from Wuhan in China. “They gave us the entire low-down, especially how India’s capabilities have evolved since the SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome),’’ said a third MP. The SARS virus killed at least 800 people across the world in the early 2000s before being brought under control. While Jaishankar told the MPS how India managed the evacuation of Indians from China, and how it also helped evacuate people from the Maldives, Vardhan focussed his briefing on the clinical aspects of the infection. “It was quite informative,’’ added the third MP who too asked not to be named.
Soon after, Modi spoke about the Bodo accord and the agreement to settle members of Brureang tribe in Tripura, terming both “historic”, according to a BJP functionary present. The functionary said on condition of anonymity that the PM dubbed these developments as a major accomplishment for the government, especially because they have been pending a long time. .
“The PM’S message to us was that just because one part of the country was geographically far, it doesn’t make it irrelevant to us,’’ said the third MP.
“These accomplishments along with the efforts being made by the BJP for the development of the North-eastern region, the PM said, would bring peace to the region,” the functionary added.
The PM also briefly touched upon one of his favourite themes-how very few MPS are attending the vote of thanks to the President discussion in the afternoons. “I won’t take too much of your time, I know that you weren’t there in the house and so have places to be. Why should I take up your time?’’ he said, according to the MPS. The sarcasm wasn’t lost on anyone present, they added.