‘Tiresome Repetition Of Old Slogans’: Congress On President Kovind’s Budget Speech

The Congress on Friday said the President’s address was a “tiresome repetition of old slogans and old cliches” that have lost all meaning and does not have a word on the macroeconomic situation, lost jobs and increasing unemployment. P Chidambaram said the address is silent on the swindling investment in the country and rising number of stalled projects as the government is “clueless”.

“All that we heard was tiresome repetition of old slogans and old cliches that have lost all meaning in the last few years.

“Sadly, there was not a word on the macro-economic situation. Not a word on lost jobs, increasing unemployment and rising consumer price inflation. Not a word on the closure of thousands of industries, especially in the SME sector,” he said on Twitter.

He also said the government is clueless, “and therefore the President’s Address was silent, on dwindling investment and rising number of stalled projects. The future of the manufacturing sector is bleak”.

President Kovind hails Citizenship Amendment Act

President Ram Nath Kovind hailed the contentious Citizenship Amendment Act as “historic” in his address to the joint sitting of both houses of Parliament, prompting protests by some opposition members.

He also said that debate and discussion on any issue strengthens democracy while violence during protests weaken it.

“The Citizenship Amendment Act is a historic law. It has fulfilled wishes of the Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi,” he said.

As soon as the president made these remarks, some opposition members shouted “shame, shame” slogans and also displayed banners.

Kovind also made it clear that the procedure to grant citizenship to people of all religions and those who have faith in India and keen to take Indian citizenship remains as it was.

“Debate and discussions strengthen democracy but violence during protests weaken democracy,” he said without directly referring to the anti-CAA protests in the country some of which have witnessed violence.

In a reference to abrogation of Article 370, Kovind said there is happiness among people of India that people in Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh have got rights on par with the rest of the country.

The President said Parliament has created record in the first seven months of the new government headed by Narendra Modi by enacting several landmark legislations.

“My government is taking strong steps for making this decade as India’s decade and this century as India’s century,” he said.