It is natural for journalists and others to judge political parties by their manifestos, but why not look at their track record? The fiscal deficit has gone down during both the NDA period as well as during the UPA period (barring the last year which was exceptional for a variety of reasons). Both periods saw economic growth pick up. The only real possibility of a problem lies in a messy coalition which could last a very short while. Even here, if global growth revives, the danger may be overstated.
Shiv Gupta, New Delhi
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