New Delhi. The Congress on Sunday accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of working with a spirit of “vindictiveness” against Maharashtra and claimed that whoever sits on the chief minister’s chair through the grand alliance “is a puppet of Delhi and Gujarat”. ” Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh said that the Congress party does not believe in giving preference to any favorite but in equal development of the entire country.
Ramesh said in a post on ‘X’, “There is a sense of vengeance against Maharashtra in ‘Anayakaal’ of ‘Hum Do, Hamare Do’. No matter who sits on the Chief Minister’s chair from the Mahayuti, the strings are always pulled from Delhi and Gujarat.” He said, “The Congress party does not believe in giving preference to favorites – we believe in equal development of the entire country. “New infrastructure projects, special investment zones and modern industry should benefit all Indians and not just one state.” The Congress leader said that when Gujarat was being industrialized in the 1970s and 80s, projects like Gujarat State Refineries and Chemicals Limited (GSFC), Gujarat Refinery and IPCL were set up without snatching away projects from other states.
Ramesh said, “Unfortunately, to please its masters, the BJP has decided that Maharashtra is not entitled to any new project or central support. An International Financial Services Center (IFSC) has been set up in GIFT City, Gujarat. Mumbai has been the financial capital of India for 200 years, but the outgoing Prime Minister refused to set up IFSC in Mumbai.” Ramesh claimed that then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had initiated efforts to set it up in Mumbai in 2006 and that land in BKC was set aside for IFSC, but it was allotted for the Bullet Train, thereby potentially diverting money from Mumbai. Two lakh jobs were lost.
He said, “Mumbai and Surat have worked together for decades to develop India’s diamond industry, with Surat handling the cutting and polishing and Mumbai handling the trade and export. However, BJP and its puppet masters decided to create a new ‘Bharat Diamond Bourse’ in Surat.” Ramesh said that it is a different matter that this move has completely failed, many diamond traders are taking their business back to Mumbai.
He claimed that major industrial investment projects like the Tata-Airbus manufacturing plant and the (now failed) Vedanta-Foxconn chip factory were moved from Maharashtra to Gujarat. Ramesh said the Textile Commissioner’s office, located in Mumbai for over 80 years, was suddenly shifted to Delhi last year without any apparent reason, despite the fact that the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) is a major hub of the textile industry. He said that ‘Dattopant Thengadi National Board for Workers Education and Development’ was also shifted from Nagpur to Delhi in 2021.
He said, “The unfortunate fact is that BJP lacks foresight and is unable to build anything. They can either sell the public sector undertaking or make threats. “Through the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, he decided that Bollywood should be shifted away from Mumbai.” He said, “Despite all the pressure from BJP, the industry in Mumbai with more than 100 years of history since the time of Dadasaheb Phalke is going nowhere.” The Congress leader said, “Our vision of unity in diversity is in stark contrast to the BJP’s habit of giving preference to its favorites and giving step-motherly treatment to the rest. On June 4, the people of India will definitely teach them a lesson.” Voting will be held on 13 Lok Sabha seats of Maharashtra on Monday.