Largest Contributor Of Poverty: Sibal On Shah’s MP Remark

FILE PHOTO: Union Home Minister Amit Shah had said on Sunday that it was the BJP government that had laid the foundation for making Madhya Pradesh self-reliant. However, Sibal claimed that the state was the fourth poorest in the country and the largest contributor of poverty as well

On Monday, Rajya Sabha MP and former Congress leader Kapil Sibal took a swipe at Union Home Minister Amit Shah over his remarks related to the state of Madhya Pradesh. Shah had said that it was the BJP government that had laid the foundation for making Madhya Pradesh self-reliant. However, Sibal claimed that the state was the fourth poorest in the country and the largest contributor of poverty as well.

Speaking at a function in Bhopal on Sunday, Shah had said that in 20 years, the BJP dispensation had successfully removed the BIMAR (laggard) category tag from Madhya Pradesh state, which he claimed was a legacy of the Congress regime. Shah also released a ‘report card’ of the BJP government on the occasion.

Shah had said that the BJP government had laid the foundation of making the state developed and self-reliant in the last 20 years.

Sibal, in a post on ‘X, had said, “Amit Shah on Madhya Pradesh: Foundation laid for a developed ‘atma nirbhar’ state. UNDP report (India): 1) 4th poorest 2) largest contributor of poverty (28.3%) 3) Below national average: literacy, infrastructure, gender gap… ‘atma nirbhar’? Vyapam! Corruption!”

Sibal has floated a non-electoral platform named ‘Insaaf’, aimed at fighting injustice. He was a Union minister during the tenure of UPA I and II. Sibal quit the Congress in May 2022 and was elected to the Rajya Sabha as an Independent member with the support of the Samajwadi Party.

Meanwhile, in other news, Jairam Ramesh, Congress general secretary, has claimed that the Delhi Police stopped people from attending a meeting organised by activists inside a building that belongs to the CPI (M). The event — from August 18-20 — was being held at the Harkishan Singh Surjeet Bhawan on Deen Dayal Upadhyay Marg in New Delhi, which is in a high-security area. It was meant to raise people’s issues and activists and opposition leaders were scheduled to participate in it.

However, according to the police, the organisers did not take permission or inform the police for the gathering in the “sensitive” zone.

Ramesh, in a post on X, questioned the police action against the “peaceful” meeting. After information was received, police found that people had gathered outside and a tent was also erected at the building.

A senior police officer said that the organisers could not produce any valid permission and added that they had not intimated the police about the programme and the gathering.

The officer added that DDU Marg is a sensitive zone and no gathering can be allowed without prior permission or intimation, in view of the G-20 event. Therefore, the organisers were advised to remove tents and asked not to continue the programme without valid permission, the officer said.

In his post on X, Ramesh said, “It is extraordinary that Delhi Police is stopping people from attending the We20 meeting organised by activists representing ‘We, The People’, inside a building that belongs to the CPM.” He said further, “The meeting is perfectly peaceful. There are no street protests. I managed to enter at 10:30 am before Delhi Police started its operation but finding it difficult to exit now. This is New India Democracy.”

Leo Saldanha, one of the organisers of the meeting, said that after the police arrived, speakers and participants were not allowed to enter the building. However, he said, they were continuing with the seminar with the people who were already inside. He added that the seminar is aimed at taking a critical look at the G20.