Sunday, January 26, 2014

On Republic Day we wish to become a genuine republic.

The Congress loves the aam aadmi or the common man. Indira Gandhi used ' garibi hatao ' which means 
' remove poverty ', to win elections  and then went on to increase income tax levels to 98.75% which created more poverty. In 2004 the Congress used the slogan, ' what did the aam aadmi get ' to win against the BJP. It then went on to start a host of social schemes paid for by the growth engineered by the BJP. In 2009 the slogan was ' Congress hand with the aam aadmi ', sweetened by the farmers' loan waiver at a cost of Rs 600 billion, NREGA scheme, which has cost Rs 2 trillion since 2006, and more trillions spent on the Sixth Pay Commission, which increased civil service pay by 80%. We all know that it led to increasing fiscal and Current Account deficits and to double digit inflation, hurting the aam aadmi and leading to a thrashing in elections in 4 states in December 2013. This time round the Congress is in a fix. If it builds a campaign around the aam aadmi uneducated people might think that it is campaigning for the Aam Aadmi Party or AAP which has formed the government in Delhi, with Congress support. Also. the AAP is promising even more handouts, than even the Congress dares to promise, secure in the knowledge that it has no chance of forming a government at the Center. Our most revered President is so peeved with the upstart laying claim to the old con trick that he said," Government is not a charity shop. Populist anarchy cannot be a substitute for governance." Oh dear, amnesia strikes again. As Finance Minister Mr Mukherjee invented numerous direct and indirect taxes to pay for social schemes.  So this time the advertisement says," No hand has a magic wand that can be waved to achieve progress. We have to form a great India together. Therefore, the Congress's aim is to give power to every hand so that everyone gets full opportunity for progress." The question rises as to why the Congress did not give full opportunity in the 10 years since 2004 and in the total of 56 years since independence. The answer is because the only aim is to win elections any which way and then to use taxpayer money to build massive assets so that the next 10 generations will not need to work and to bequeath seats to sons and daughters in a hereditary transfer of power. The king is dead, long live the king. Today is Republic Day. Sadly, we are yet to become a republic.

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