BJP manifesto deceptive, bubble of lies': Opposition

New Delhi: The Opposition led by the Congress on Monday dubbed the BJP's election manifesto a “Jhansa Patra” (deception document) and a “bubble of lies” and said it would have been better had they issued a “maafinama” instead and apologised to the nation for “failing” to fulfil the promises made.

West Bengal chief minister and Trinamul Congress chief Mamata Banerjee blamed the Prime Minister for not helping the state financially and being busy with foreign tours during his entire tenure.

Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) convener Arvind Kejriwal said that the BJP's manifesto was a fresh set of “jumlas”.

Highlighting the Congress' thrust on promising justice to people if voted to power, senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel said the BJP document was “lies versus justice”.

The Congress also released a list of 125 questions of “broken promises” made by the BJP in its 2014 manifesto, including key issues of jobs, 50 per cent rise in farmers' income, checking price rise and corruption and bringing back black money. Mr Patel said the Congress' manifesto had a picture of people, but the BJP document had only Prime Minister Narendra Modi on its cover.

“On one hand is the public on the cover of Congress manifesto, while the BJP document has only Modi's picture depicting 'me and only me'. I feel this BJP manifesto is 'lies versus justice'. I feel it is lies and only lies. It would have been better, if they issued an apology letter, as in the last five years they had nothing to show,” he told reporters.

Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said Modi's central 'mantra' is to “trap people by deception”. He termed the manifesto a “failed attempt by a failed person”.

“We have seen Modiji's journey which is from 'jumlas' (rhetoric) to 'jhansas' (deception) Today 125 crore people of the country are demanding answers from Modiji on 125 promises made before coming to power. People will not accept your 'Jhansa Patra' (deception letter) anymore and time has come for you to carry your bag and go,” he said.

Mr Surjewala said that Mr Modi has “poisoned” the confidence of the people in the government. He alleged that only two people have seen a gain in their physical weight, an apparent reference to Modi and Shah.

He also added that the BJP brings back the Ram temple in its agenda every five years during elections and soon after “after coronation, they send it back to exile”.

The Congress spokesperson said this manifesto of the BJP does not talk about Rs 15 lakh in every bank account, building smart cities, skill India and cheap petrol or diesel.
    
Congress spokesperson and Rajya Sabha MP Rajeev Gowda said what this government achieved and failed to achieve in the last five years is something that comes through the manifesto very clearly.

“Let us look at some of the key highlights in the economy section. What do we see - the contradictions that characterise this government are very evident right up front. They say they will reduce taxes and at the same time say they will increase tax collections. So, basically it is just a lot of 'jumla' once again, but there are some omissions that hurt me very-very much and that is while they do talk about 'kisan' - once again there is absolutely no concern and attention paid to agricultural labour,” Mr Gowda said.

Meanwhile, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said, “Did PM even give a single penny for West Bengal? The person who makes such big claims must see what he has contributed towards Bengal. He was busy in foreign tours for five years and now he saw the need to come here.”

“The BJP's latest set of announcements is another round of Jumlas.

It was the same in 2014, and People have seen through their PR and spin. The time to vote out this government  is now,” tweeted Mr Yechury.

Delhi Chief Minister and AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal tweeted, “BJP unveils a fresh set of jumlas without telling the country what is the fate of its 2014 jumlas. Modi-Shah don't have the courage to speak on why demonetisation was done? What happened to two crore jobs? Why were farmers pushed towards destruction?”