Jaitley: 2019 is about 'Modi vs an anarchist combination'
What's the story
From the hospital bed where he's recovering from his kidney transplant operation, Arun Jaitley has launched a scathing attack on the Congress and the "maverick and temperamental" leaders of regional parties like TMC, DMK, and BSP. He added that the political debate in 2019 would be centred around "Modi vs an anarchist combination" of political parties. Here's what the he had to say.
On Congress
"Congress's days of glory are over"
In the Facebook post titled "My Reflections on the NDA Government after Completion of Four Years in Power", Jaitley said that the Congress had been pushed to the fringes of Indian politics and its electoral chances are shrinking. He added that Congress's desperation, visible in its meek support of regional parties, is a result of its decline from political dominance to political insignificance.
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Congress has even lost its bargaining capacity
"Karnataka had witnessed a telling example...a regional political party whose base at best is confined to a few districts was able to extract a chief ministership of the Congress to which the Congress meekly surrendered. It had even lost its bargaining capacity," explained Jaitley.
On regional parties
Jaitley confident that opposition alliance will crumble
Hitting out at particular regional parties like TMC, DMK, BSP, TDP, and JD(S), Jaitley said that these parties have "temperamental" leaders and that they "change ideological positions" frequently. Jaitley also said an alliance between such parties is a "failed idea" and would crumble under the weight of its own internal "contradictions". He further said that some of these parties have a "dubious track record of governance".
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Opposition parties are far from stable politics
"They frequently change political positions. They have supported the BJP claiming that it is in larger national interest and then turned turtle and oppose it in the name of secularism...Stable politics is far from their political track record," wrote Jaitley pointedly.
On NDA rule
Jaitley spells out the achievements of the NDA government
Defending the Modi government, Jaitley said that four years of NDA rule had transformed India from being among the "fragile five" to becoming one of the world's fastest growing economies. He also congratulated the NDA government for creating a more tax compliant society with less than 2% current account deficit, lower fiscal deficit, and under-control inflation.
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Jaitley says NDA's priorities for the year are set
"As we enter the fifth year of the government, the NDA's priorities are clear. This will be our year of consolidation of the policies and programmes which we have implemented," said Jaitley, chalking out the government's plans for the year.