New Delhi : Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh launched a scathing attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, accusing him of diminishing the dignity of public discourse and the gravitas of the Prime Minister’s office through his “hateful speeches” during the campaigning for the Lok Sabha elections 2024.
In a three-page open letter addressed to the people of the country ahead of the June 1 voting, Dr. Singh expressed his keen interest in the elections and criticized Modi for indulging in what he described as the most vicious form of hate speech.
Singh stated, “Modi ji is the first Prime Minister to lower the dignity of public discourse, and thereby the gravity of the office of the Prime Minister. No Prime Minister in the past has uttered such hateful, unparliamentary, and coarse terms, meant to target either a specific section of society or the opposition.”
He also refuted false statements attributed to him by Modi and emphasized that he had never singled out one community from another, asserting that such behavior was the sole copyright of the BJP.
Singh, who served as India’s Prime Minister for two terms from 2004 to 2014, accused the Narendra Modi government of withholding funds from Punjab during Congress rule in the state. He highlighted instances where the BJP government at the Centre denied funds to Punjab for various initiatives.
Regarding the state of the economy, Singh claimed that India witnessed “unimaginable turmoil” during the ten years of Modi’s government. He criticized policies such as demonetization, the Goods and Services Tax (GST), and the management of the COVID-19 pandemic, which he argued had resulted in subpar GDP growth, unprecedented unemployment, and inflation.
Singh also criticized the Modi government’s implementation of the “ill-conceived” Agniveer scheme in Army recruitments, which he claimed endangered national security. He assured voters that the Congress party would abolish the Agniveer Scheme if elected.
In conclusion, Singh appealed to the people of Punjab to vote for the Congress party, emphasizing that only the grand old party could ensure a growth-oriented, progressive future for India while safeguarding democracy and the country’s Constitution.
