Senior BJP leader and MP M. Venkaiah Naidu joined issue with Union Finance Minister P. Chidambaram for terming his party’s economic model ‘blood-eyed’ and said it was Congress’ blood-sucking economic model that pushed the country backwards.
In a statement here on Thursday, he said it was atrocious on part of Mr. Chidambaram to criticise the opposition party on foreign soil. Pointing out that it was the Congress that ruled the country for most of the time after Independence, he said “because of your blood-sucking policies, the poor have become poorer and rich the richer”.
He said the Congress-led UPA government failed on all economic parameters and the growth rate was the lowest in the decade.
The fiscal deficit was 2.5 per cent in 2007-08 and now was 5.2 per cent and likely to be brought down to 4.8 per cent next year.
The economic slump under the UPA rule was less about global meltdown and more about complete absence of leadership, dual power centres, disastrous policies and inherent corruption. Claiming that the six-year NDA rule was a golden era in so far as the management of economy was concerned, he said when NDA demitted office, the economy was growing at 8.4 per cent, the fastest in 14 years. In 2012-13, the rate fell below 5 per cent, the lowest in the decade.
