 "Raj govt failed on every parameter, says Goyal; BJP plans for protests")
The Ashok Gehlot-led dispensation in Rajasthan has failed on every parameter, Union Minister Piyush Goyal claimed on Saturday and alleged that the state did not develop in the past four-and-a-half years due to an "unstable and incompetent" government.
He also claimed that news of scams in the state government regularly dominate the headlines.
"The Gehlot government has completely failed on every parameter. It is a corrupt government. Rajasthan did not develop in four-and-a-half years due to an unstable and incompetent government and the news of scams come in the newspapers every day," Goyal told reporters in Bharatpur.
Goyal, the Union Commerce and Industries minister, alleged a Rs 20,000 crore scam in the Jal Jeevan Mission tender process. A similar scam of Rs 5,000 crore took place in the IT department, corruption in mining and the mid-day meal scheme have also surfaced, he said.
The Union minister is in Rajasthan to take part in the BJP's outreach programme to mark the ninth anniversary of the Narendra Modi government at the Centre.
During his visit to the state, he also hit out at the law-and-order situation in Rajasthan.
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Goyal claimed that women and girls are not safe in Rajasthan and alleged that the Gehlot government has failed to punish the accused in the Kanhaiya Lal murder case.
The government led by Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot has betrayed the people of Rajasthan, he said.
The Union minister said the people of Rajasthan, believing the Congress' promises, gave it an opportunity to form the government in 2018. However, it has failed to fulfil those promises.
"Today, petrol and diesel cost the most in Rajasthan," he claimed.
The Centre reduced fuel prices twice. States governed by the BJP and NDA constituents reduced the VAT to pass on that relief to the people but the Rajasthan government did not want to give any relief to the public, Goyal said.
He also took a jibe at the state government's inflation relief camps and said only promises are being made and registrations done. However, the people are not getting any real benefits.
The nine years of Prime Minister Narendra Modi have been dedicated to empowering the country and every citizen through inclusive, progressive and sustainable development, Goyal said.
Nine years ago, India was considered one of the five weakest economies. Today, it has become the fifth largest economy in the world, the Union minister said.
The BJP on Saturday also announced plans for protests against the state government in Jaipur, Ajmer and Jhunjhunu this month.
Bhajan Lal Sharma, general secretary of the BJP's Rajasthan unit, said the party will "expose" the Gehlot government's misrule, corruption, negativity, crimes against women, false promises on unemployment allowance and the issue of paper leaks.
On July 5, women from across the state will protest against alleged atrocities against them in Jaipur. In Jhunjhunu on July 12, farmers will stage a demonstration against the government's "failure" to fulfil its promises of loan waivers.
Youngsters will protest in Ajmer on July 18 against the government's alleged failure to provide unemployment allowance and the paper leak issue.
(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)