Straight Line News Network
Jammu, Sep 21: Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Sunday told the Parliament that there is “utter mismanagement” of the coronavirus crisis. He criticised the Centre by saying that India was facing “worst of both worlds” referring to the rising Coronavirus cases and shrinking economy, reported Scroll.in.
According to ANI, Tharoor said in Lok Sabha, “We have neither managed to limit the spread of the virus nor have we managed to keep the economy afloat. The GDP [gross domestic product] for the first time in 41 years will actually shrink.” Tharoor further stated that the Coronavirus crisis had aggravated India’s unemployment problem and destroyed small businesses. He added that there was a need for “clearly communicated protocol” and a comprehensive plan to deal with the escalating health crisis.
Ignoring Suggestions of the Opposition
Tharoor also criticised the Centre for not taking suggestions from Opposition leaders on how to handle the crisis. “The failure to adequately recognise the scale and complexity of the problem the nation was dealing with, compounded their unwillingness to listen to the voices that warned well in advance of the consequences of ignoring the problem of such magnitude,” he said according to PTI.
The Congress MP also criticised government over the manner of implementation of the nationwide lockdown. “Even though the people of this country were given three days’ notice before locking down for a mere 17-hour Janata Curfew on a Sunday when most individuals spend a lot of time at home anyway, a trial for a longer national lockdown what followed was horrific,” he said, according to ANI.
180 days have passed
Tharoor added: “The Prime Minister [Narendra Modi] in his address to residents of his constituency likened the disaster he had unleashed upon the nation to Kurukshetra. He said that Mahabharat took 18 days before victory was earned and tackling the COVID-19 will take 21 days. 180 days have passed, our national caseload is the second-largest in the world and heading for number. Daily cases have nearly reached a lakh. The economy is in tatters having suffered a contraction far more severe than any other country.”
Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam MP Dayanidhi Maran, Trinamool Congress’ Kalyan Banerjee and Shiv Sena MP Arvind Sawant also joined Tharoor in criticising the government over its handling of the pandemic.
BJP asks ‘Where is Rahul Gandhi?’
BJP member Kirit Solanki, meanwhile, highlighted the government’s welfare schemes for the poor and said that the Centre was taking efficient steps to deal with the crisis, like extensive testing. Hitting out at Rahul Gandhi, Solanki said “a leader” was tweeting on ways to deal with the virus while being absent from House proceedings.
