Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Thursday asserted that the gap between rich and the poor is growing, and the BJP-led government at the Centre has done nothing to address this issue.
He made the statement after he along with Rajeev Gowda, Chairperson of Congress’ Research Department and Chairperson of Social Media Department Supriya Shrinate released a report titled ‘Real State of the Economy 2025’ at the party headquarters here.
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The report questions the Narendra Modi-led government about the country’s growth.
Talking about the report, the Congress MP said, “Many of the facts mentioned in the report are conveniently buried and completely ignored by the Union Government. The media doesn’t get the opportunity to carry the truth. Therefore, Rajeev Gowda’s team decided to produce a comprehensive report on the real state of the economy. This report is well-documented and well-sourced.”
Asserting that the economy is indeed facing significant challenges, he said the high unemployment rates among youth and graduates are alarming, with nearly 40 per cent and 30 per cent, respectively.
“This is exacerbated by stagnant wages, which have remained unchanged for four to five years, making it difficult for people to make ends meet. Meanwhile, inflation is on the rise, with food, education, and healthcare inflation increasing by double digits,” the former Finance Minister said.
Attacking the ruling BJP, the former Union finance minister further said, “There is huge inequality. Nobody is denying that the ‘upper crust’ of one per cent is completely wealthy. Even the middle class, the top 20 or 30 per cent may be better off, but what about the remaining 70 per cent population. The gap between rich and poor is growing. The government has done nothing to address this inequality.”
“A budget analysis of the last six and seven years will show that the government expenditure on health, education, social welfare and rural development has fallen year after year. Allocations for major welfare programmes have fallen steeply over the last seven to eight years,” he said.
