INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Call it the biggest confidence vote for the NDA government, and it is coming from none other than PM Modi himself
In a freewheeling interview to The Times of India, Modi said he is fully confident of making a comeback with more seats than in
2014.
Talking at length about his government’s priorities ahead of the 2019 polls, Modi says policies won’t be tweaked to garner votes,
making it clear that the focus will be on development, and development alone
The prime minister hit out at mob lynching, saying that there cannot be any justification for such dastardly acts
On the controversial Rafale fighter jet deal, the PM hit out at the Congress for politicising what he calls “an honest and transparent
deal between two sovereign governments”.
On economic development, Modi gives a pat on his back, saying that big-ticket reforms like GST
and other tax tweaks will boost the economy in the long run
Modi also rubbished the Opposition propaganda over jobless growth, claiming that his government has added more jobs than promised.
According
to Modi, the bluff on the Mahagathbandhan has been called with the NDA candidate’s election as the deputy chair of the Rajya Sabha
On ET NOW’s India Development Debate, party leaders and political commentators discussed the claims made by the prime minister over the
state of the economy and polity in the run-up to the all-important 2019 polls
Here are the key takeaways:
PANEL VIEWYOGENDRA YADAVFOUNDER, SWARAJ INDIA POLITICAL PARTY
I have never heard of an interview which has no
Why was the question on Rafale dismissed in four sentences What PM said on job front is nothing new
That’s the new narrative for the past few months
The simple story is these were people earlier not on the roll
Let’s not say these are new jobs
PM wants us to actively speculate
If new jobs are created then why it is in every single opinion survey employment is the highest concern.
GOURAV VALLABHSPOKESPERSON,
CONGRESS
It’s not an interview, its ‘Mann ki Baat’
There is a basic error in EPFO counting
91% of exposure of Mudra loans is on an average 21000
How can one person start a new venture When we left the government, the NPA was 2.5 lakh crore, now its 11lakh crore
Gross fixed capital formation is at its lowest
Exports are at an all-time low
PM statements and actions are not same
PM mentioned about noconfidence
Has he reacted on any questions asked by Rahul Gandhi
SANJEEV SRIVASTAVPOLITICAL COMMENTATOR
It was a comprehensive answer statements
I liked the statement on opposition alliance
But what is the point of asking every issue if you are not asked follow up questions When lynching have been happening PM was expected to be
Despite all this PM’s unequivocal statement is welcome
There is soft peddling of the issue
There is a clear sense of communal atmosphere
There is this Hindutva subtext that BJP will benefit from
Will caste subtext overpower Hindutva subtext That will be the deciding factor in North India.
HITESH JAINSPOKESPERSON, BJP
When the answers
are clear you don’t need any follow up questions
You cannot locate economic reforms only on the basis of privatisation
We are flagging the fact we inherited problems of UPA but we are not shying away from solutions
People conveniently forget everything
On NRC, it’s a SC undertaken exercise
People are trying to confuse
As far as illegal citizen are concerned we should have a clear policy
PM also said our campaign is focusing on development.
ANAND RANGANATHANSCIENTIST AND AUTHOR
In retrospect, having looked at the scope and
scale of the interview, I think Times of India did ask him tough questions
The questions were tough but again there is no point in asking a tough question if you cannot follow it up with another subsidiary question
The answers were very factual
Some of the facts are impressive
The thing about jobs, the debate is settled
It’s actually tilting towards Modi
PM has yet again not answered on Rafale
