PM Saradha salvo at Mamata

TT, Nov. 20: Narendra Modi today alluded to the Saradha scandal to indirectly attack Mamata Banerjee for her campaign against the demonetisation drive, prompting the chief minister to say the Prime Minister was "equating corruption with anyone who opposes" his policy.

The Prime Minister also attacked Mayawati, again without naming her, projecting himself as the messiah of the "honest" poor as well as the middle class and the nemesis of the "dishonest" wealthy.

"I know what kind of people have spoken out against it (the demonetisation), why they spoke against it, why they want me to be finished," Modi told a BJP rally in Agra.

The Prime Minister added: "Are you saying that the people of this country don't know who patronised a chit fund racket? Who managed the money? Lakhs and crores of poor people deposited their hard-collected savings in these chit funds that were blessed by certain politicians. But lakhs and crores of rupees vanished and the poor had nowhere to go."

Although the BJP had sought to make Saradha an issue in the elections in Bengal, it could not stop Mamata from pulling off a spectacular victory. Modi has resurrected the controversy at a time Mamata has positioned herself at the forefront of the campaign against the recall of the currency notes.

"Those who were hit hard, they are asking only one question? Why is it some 'beimaan' (dishonest) persons do not want the majority to live in peace? So, is my government not bound to protect the affected?" Modi asked, suggesting that the BJP's battle against Mamata and her allies could be a long-drawn one, even at the peril of jeopardising the winter session of Parliament.

Mamata later tweeted: "Pradhan Mantri ji, you are equating corruption with anyone who opposes your policy. Are you the only magician? Listen to the voice of the people. Feel their pain. People will not forgive you for this. They are suffering."

Modi targeted Mayawati, too, aware that Agra is the original seat of Uttar Pradesh's Dalit identity politics. Agra has a large presence of Jatavs, the community to which the BSP leader belongs and which has been economically, socially and politically empowered with time.

The Prime Minister did not name Mayawati either but concentrated his attack on suggestions that tickets for the Assembly election in Uttar Pradesh were distributed in exchange for money.

"Some (leaders) have no scruples in looting others conclusively. You seek a ticket for an MLA's election? Okay, bring the notes. What happened to the wads and wads that were accumulated? Those notes belonged to the poor who earned them through sheer hard work. This should stop because black money eats up the vitals of our country," the Prime Minister said.

The Prime Minister added another group to his litany of foes: traders, traditionally the BJP's backbone.

"To do anything good... tell me if Modi shuts the door on traders, they will be furious with Modi, they will look for ways to nail Modi. So many such people are there," he said.

He said some traders in Chandigarh were using 30 lakh litres of kerosene to adulterate diesel even though the cheaper fuel was consumed only by a few residents of slums in the city. "We solved the problem by giving LPG connections to those who didn't have one. The use of kerosene was eliminated," he added.

After painting Mamata and Mayawati as enemies of the people, Modi conflated the demonetisation scheme with his persona as a "champion" of the distressed majority. In popular perception, both Mamata and Mayawati are perceived as being completely on the side of the poor.

"I realise you people have been inconvenienced by the withdrawal of the Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes. I never denied this from the first day (since the scheme was announced). But to others, I have meted out the punishment of a lifetime that they long deserved because they robbed the poor and the middle class of their rights, of the privileges you rightfully earned," said Modi.

The Prime Minister elaborated on why he had singled out the poor and the middle class as a counterpoint against the rich.

"When these looters and black marketeers cheat the middle class, the middle class loses its sense of security. When the poor are denied rights, it means they will not get clean drinking water, their children are deprived of quality education and their old parents of subsidised medicines. But rest assured the money being deposited in the banks will not sleep inside locked vaults. Banks are bound to give loans because someone may wish to set up a hair-cutting salon, another a laundry facility, textile, utensil ships. These banks will have to lower the interest rates," declared Modi.

He claimed his decision was not "meant to trouble anyone but to change the future for young people".

"From day one, I asked you to give me 50 days, just 50 days to put up with problems. Every two or three days, the (demonetisation) scheme is being reviewed and tweaked as and when necessary because we are not lakeer ka fakeer (dogmatic) people. When I heard there was a flaw, my ears pricked.

"Time was when a big town municipality could collect barely Rs 5 crore by way of power tariffs. Who was defaulting, who was circumventing rules? Not the middle class and the poor but the privileged who could access officers and politicians. Today, some municipalities have already gathered Rs 15 crore since the scheme began," Modi said.