Congress, AAP playing fraud on people in name of welfare, alleges BJP

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) alleged on Thursday that Congress, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and other opposition parties are "playing fraud" in the name of social welfare.

The BJP also alleged AAP government's subsidised electricity scheme is another example of a regulatory mechanism being misused to defraud the public and the exchequer in Delhi."

"Arvind Kejriwal's government is cheating the people of Delhi in the name of providing free electricity because the companies providing free electricity will recover about Rs 20 thousand crores from the people of Delhi in the future. This amount is going to increase by about Rs 5 crore every year. In the future, the people of Delhi will have to pay for electricity at much higher prices for current consumption," BJP spokesperson Gopal Krishna Agarwal said while addressing the media here in Delhi.

 

"By the financial year 2021-22, the regulatory assets for electricity distribution in Delhi were Rs 18,578 crore, and the annual interest amount accruing on them will be approximately Rs 1500 crore. The subsidy amount given by the Kejriwal government for electricity is being given to private distribution companies instead of being transferred directly to the public. In the year 2018, the LG of Delhi said that the audit should be done through CAG, but the Kejriwal government has refused," Agarwal said.

The BJP leader went on to allege that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), one leader after another, is getting exposed for their misdeeds.

"Today we expose another of their misdeeds. Providing subsidised electricity and creating regulatory assets is another example of a regulatory mechanism being misused to defraud the public and the exchequer of the AAP government in Delhi. Earlier governments used loan restructuring and evergreening for bank fraud," he said.

"The people of the country should be well aware of the false promises and fraud played out by the opposition parties in the name of social welfare. It is not without reason that in 2014 India was in the category of the fragile five economies of the world, the reasons being corruption, leakages, nepotism, and financial indiscipline, to name a few," he added.

The BJP spokesperson further claimed that welfare in the name of socialism was nothing more than the "personal gratification" of the few.

Praising the ruling BJP government, Agarwal said, "PM Modi over the last nine years has worked overtime to create an ecosystem of transparency, good governance, targeted and leakage-proof delivery through the use of technology, equality of opportunity, and fighting nepotism in such diverse field as politics, bureaucracy and even sports. Economic power requires robust reforms, fiscal responsibility, sound macroeconomic parameters, ease of doing business, ease of living etc. BJP-led governments have a positive agenda and a clear roadmap to achieve their goals. Therefore BJP is getting the support of all the people across the country."

"Opposition has no roadmap or agenda and therefore in search of relevance and revival is resorting to unethical and irrational promises without any serious intent to implement, trying to make fool of the people," he further said.

Attacking the Karnataka government led by the Congress, he stated, "The Congress Government in Karnataka is diverting funds to the tune of Rs. 40,000 crore from developmental projects for their poll promises. The Deputy Chief Minister of that State is on record saying that the State will have no funds for development expenditure because the funds will go to fulfil poll promises."

"Diversion of limited state resources for buying votes and for the purpose of appeasement of certain sections of the society bodes ill for the country. False promises and fraud on the fiscal status of the government by resorting to financial jugglery have become routine for the opposition," said the BJP leader.

Further taking a jibe at the Delhi government led by the AAP, Gopal Krishna Agarwal said, "The State of Delhi is a classic case where under-recovery on the supply of electricity is leading to the creation of Regulatory Assets. We all know that the electricity distribution in the city was privatized long back. These private companies are not able to recover costs including a fixed rate of return on capital employed. This under-recovered amount constitutes 'Regulatory assets' in the balance sheets of these private distribution companies. Since these amounts, which now range in tens of thousands of crores remain recoverable assets in the balance sheet, future consumers of electricity in Delhi would end up paying for electricity consumed today".

"Clause 5.11(h)(4) of National Tariff Policy, 2016 states that future consumers should not be burdened with past costs. The facility of a regulatory asset has been provided by Electricity Regulatory Commissions to limit tariff impact in a particular year and should be done only as a very rare exception in case of natural calamity or force majeure conditions", he added.

"It must be kept in mind that the Delhi State government takes pride in the fact that electricity rates in Delhi have not been increased in the last 8 years. It is utterly dishonest of the AAP government to claim so because the Regulatory Assets of the power distribution companies have ballooned during this period and it's the people of Delhi who will have to pay it eventually and that too with interest that is being accrued at the rate of Rs. 1,500 crore annually. AAP government has allotted Rs. 3,250 crore in the budget for the year 2023-24 to Discoms as a subsidy for consumers. That amount will go towards providing free electricity for up to 200 units per connection and a 50 per cent subsidy for consumption of up to 400 units. This amount is incorporated into the recovered amount. Thus the Regulatory Assets will not be affected (reduced) by this allocation," he said.

Taking potshots at the previous United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government led by the grand old party, Congress, the BJP leader said, "There are several other examples from the past of the UPA government: (a) Issuance of oil bonds to the oil marketing companies to the tune of Rs. 1.25 lakh crore during UPA and (b) Out of budget borrowing to the tune of Rs 2 lakh crore by the Food Corporation of India and not accounting for it in the central budget."

"I would also quote 'Milton Friedman who famously said that there is no such thing as a free lunch...' What opposition parties are promising in terms of transfers to voters as free will come at a cost in the long term," said Gopal Krishna Agarwal.

Meanwhile, he lauded the BJP government stating, "Bharatiya Janata Party, under Narendra Modi ji, is working relentlessly to provide fiscally prudent and responsible social welfare schemes and expose false and fraudulent promises of the opposition. We believe in empowerment and not entitlement and the difference is evident in sound current macro-economic fundamentals like GDP growth, fiscal deficit, inflation, foreign exchange reserve etc."

There has been a war of words between the ruling BJP and the opposition with the latter claiming that the central government is "misusing the central probe agencies".

Earlier, AAP leader Sanjay Singh was arrested in connection with the alleged liquor scam case, which created political pandemonium across the nation with the AAP staging massive protests and the BJP, on the other hand, showcasing what it called, the "triumph of the truth".

Earlier on Thursday, Congress leader and Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot alleged that the "misuse of central probe agencies" will only lead to "disbelief" towards them.