Former Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan on Monday accused the ruling BJP of "sidestepping" core issues like "economic downturn" and instead raising rhetoric over abrogation of Article 370 in the run-up to the state assembly elections.
Chavan, who is in the fray from Karad South seat in Satara district, dared the state government to name even a single big ticket project conceived and implemented by it in the last five years.
"Projects like the Navi Mumbai international airport, Eastern Freeway, memorials for Babasaheb Ambedkar and Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, Coastal Road, Trans-Harbour Link were all conceived by the erstwhile Congress-led government. The 'bhumipujan' for the Metro 3 line was performed by us. Our government had improved the east-west connectivity in Mumbai," he told a press conference.
He alleged the BJP was shying away from discussing the issues concerning the common man in its campaigning.
"People are now realising that Article 370 is being raked up to sidestep the real issues. The economy is a cause of concern now. Automotive and construction sectors in Maharashtra are severely affected. Joblessness is on the high, but the government is in a denial mode," he added.
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Taking a veiled swipe at Union ministers Nirmala Sitharaman and Ravi Shankar Prasad for their statements, Chavan said, "Instead of addressing serious issues, the government is blaming Ola and Uber...They are referring to the box office successes of films to state that all is well."
Chavan also asked the government to "reveal links of few industrialists with the banking sector" which he blamed for "irregularities in some PSU banks and the Punjab and Maharashtra Cooperative (PMC) bank", resulting into depositors losing their money.
"Suicide by a farmer in Buldhana district wearing a BJP campaign T-shirt was a sorry picture reflecting the performance of the state government," he said.
Chavan said the government "failed" on all fronts.
"The government failed to fulfil the promises including doubling the income of farmers and providing MSP to their crops," he added.
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