CM advised to apologise over 'freebies' remark
Source: Chronicle News Service

Imphal, June 15 2021: Reacting strongly to recent remarks made by Chief Minister N Biren on free rice, free medicines and free vaccines provided to the people, Manipur Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) president MLA K Govindas on behalf of Indian National Congress (INC) has demanded the CM to tender an unconditional apology to the people of the state for his 'unforgivable and morally dehumanising words' to the poor and needy people of the state during this Covid-19 pandemic.

In a statement, Govindas said that Congress party is not surprised by the CM's public statements as they overtly reflect the thinking of BJP's ideology and political principles towards the poor and the downtrodden people.

"Everybody knows that those who have no respect for Mahatma Gandhi will also have no respect for the poor.

Had BJP respected Mahatma Gandhi, the BJP CM would not have uttered such distasteful words.

The insensitivity of and humiliating public mockery by the BJP CM's statements towards the poor people of the state shows that the BJP government in the state has no regards for the poor people.

His statement is indeed, unbecoming of a Chief Minister of a state," Govindas contended.

"The Chief Minister was asking what the previous Congress governments had done for the state in 15 years.

I want to ask him whether he was not a part of the cabinet under the then Congress Chief Minister O Ibobi.

He served not only as cabinet minister but also as a Congress government spokesperson.

Does he mean to say that the Congress government, in which he was a minister for a full term in 2007-12, did not do anything for the people of the state? Does he mean to say that he, as the then Congress government spokesperson, did not announce to the people about the good governance and development done by the Congress government? His hypocrisy and double speak are being exposed today, and the people of Manipur are its witness," the statement said.

Asking who is doing double standard politics during the Covid pandemic, the statement said that it is the BJP government which is doing double standard politics by consistently raising heavy taxes on petrol and giving back nothing to the people to fight the pandemic.

The BJP Chief Minister ridiculed the people, in Manipuri language, by asking from where Prime Minister Narendra Modi would give free rice, free medicines and free vaccine if there were no returns, and whether the free items would fall from sky.

The BJP CM has created an infamous record of publicly humiliating and mocking the helplessness of the ordinary citizens of India in Manipur, Govindas said, while adding that the hypocrisy of Biren government has been exposed by itself.

The statement then raised a series of questions to chief minister N Biren and stated, since BJP came in power in 2017, the people of Manipur have already given Rs 702 crore as state's taxes, such as sales tax/VAT (Value Added Tax) in buying petrol to the state exchequer, as per Union Government's PPAC data.

Even, during the pandemic, in the financial year of 2020-21, the people of Manipur gave Rs 167 crore through state's tax collection to the BJP government in the state.

The BJP government, during the pandemic (2020-21), had collected Rs 5 crore more than the total of Rs 162 crore collected during the first year (201718) of the BJP rule in the state.

Manipur Government takes VAT at 36.5 per cent on every litre of petrol.

Today, petrol price in the state has crossed Rs 100 per litre.

Through petrol, BJP government in the state received Rs 162 crore in 201718, Rs 181 crore in 2018-19, Rs 192 crore in 2019-20, and Rs 167 crore in 2020-21, and the total receipts is Rs 702 crore from 2017 till date, and this amount is not from the BJP government in the state or Modi government, but it is from the honest earnings of the people of the state only.

People of the state gave the CM and his government Rs 702 crore, Govindas maintained and asked how many crores have the BJP government given back to the people during this pandemic or has the government announced any economic package for the people.

It further queried why the government collected Rs 167 crore through petrol from the people's pockets during the pandemic in 2020-21 instead of giving something back in the form of an economic package to the poor and needy people of the state to tolerate the pandemic.

While leading the people's centric government, has the CM ever reduced a single paisa on petrol for the people of the state since 2017, it asked.

It further wondered if the BJP government does not hold the constitutional obligations to help the poor by providing them free rice, free medicines and free vaccines as per constitutional and fundamental rights, and as guaranteed in statutory Acts passed In the Parliament and national government's executive policy? As per National Disaster Management Act, food, medicines, essential commodities, drinking water, shelter among others are to be provided for free to the people during notified national calamities, and Covid pandemic has already been notified as a national disaster.

Congress governments in the past gave free polio, TB and Hepatitis vaccinations to the people.

The Modi government received Rs 20.55 lakh crore since 2014 till date through central excise duty and other central taxes from the people of India through petrol.

Even, during the pandemic (2020-21), the Union Government received Rs 2.76 lakh crore from the people's pockets.

If the people of India gave Rs 20.55 lakh crore to Modi government, why Modi government should not spend something for the people of India during the pandemic, he asked.

As Modi government took Rs 2.76 lakh crore from the people through petrol sale during pandemic, did Modi government spend Rs 2 lakh crore to fight the pandemic in the country, he continued.

Govindas also asked when BJP Chief Minister of Manipur will produce the white paper on the balance sheets on the credit and debit of the donations received and its corresponding expenditure during the first wave of the pandemic.

Will the CM lay down the white paper on different amounts received by the state government from the central government to fight the pandemic during the first wave? Rice and medicines are already provided for free under different constitutional schemes of central government to all the eligible citizens of our country.

Vaccines, too, are provided for free to 75 per cent by central government as per the policy announced by Prime Minister.

What has the state BJP government done to give additional rice, medicines and vaccines, above the allotted statutory rights of the beneficiaries of the centrally sponsored schemes, for the entire population of Manipur during the pandemic? How many crores of rupees have been spent from the state exchequer by the state BJP government to fight the pandemic, both in the first and second wave? RBI gave Rs 99,122 crore to Modi government in May, 2021.Besides this, in the whole world, the people of India have to pay 260 per cent tax on fuel while the fuel tax is only 20 per cent in the United States of America.

The cost of petrol without any tax or commission is hardly Rs 35 per litre.

Why is Biren government not making any attempt to share these billions of profits of Modi government with the poor people of Manipur during the pandemic? the statement asked.

The national economy has been deeply affected with hardly any employment and low FDI ranking.

Compared to the FDI ranking during the former Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh's tenure, in today's Modi government, India's Foreign Direct Investment is nowhere, the statement added.

Govindas then asked whether it is only the Congress party that has felt the needs of the poor, the downtrodden and the needy people of the state.

He appealed to the people of the state to raise questions for their rights to the BJP regime stating that Congress will stand with the people for their rights.

Congress is fighting for the honour and dignity of the poor people in the state and will fight together against any form of injustices done to the poor while spreading Mahatma Gandhi's idea of serving the poorest of the poor in our society, the statement added.

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