Congress-BJP spat over BPL criteria

Congress leader Ajay Maken on Monday reminded Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi and BJP had made a big issue of Planning Commission’s BPL figure of Rs 32 and Rs 28 a day in urban and rural areas and had described it as a “joke”. File photo

A war of words broke out on Monday between the BJP and the Congress over the Below Poverty Line (BPL) criteria, with Gujarat being at the centre of the controversy.

While the Congress sought an apology from the BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi for “insulting” and “mocking” the poor as the yardstick for those below the poverty line in Gujarat has been pegged at Rs. 10.80 daily, the BJP hit back saying determining the criterion was the domain of the Centre and the Planning Commission. The BJP accused the Congress of not doing its homework before targeting Mr. Modi.