Cong wants sedition case against Modi

The Congress has demanded that a sedition case be registered against Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi for daring the Centre to stop funds to the state for a year and not collect any taxes from it in return.

“It is an assault on India. It is an irresponsible statement. A case of sedition should be filed against Modi,” said AICC spokesman Manish Tiwari on Wednesday. Asked if his party would initiate filing of a case, Tiwari said the Congress never hesitated in taking any step in national interest.

Tiwari condemned the CM’s comments and demanded that the BJP explain whether it agreed with Modi’s statement. “Is this their idea of akhand Bharat?’’ he asked sarcastically, noting that no CM has ever made this kind of remark.

Tiwari denied as “baseless’’ Modi’s charge that the Centre collects nearly Rs 40,000 crore in taxes from Gujarat but gives only 2.5 per cent of central funds to the state. He said there is no system of computing how much tax a state gives to the Centre.

BJP on back foot, says CM misunderstood.

The BJP went on the defensive on Modi’s remark over taxes, saying that he had not been understood correctly. “His expression was one of agony over the step-motherly treatment meted out to the state. It was not a policy statement,” senior BJP leader Venkaiah Naidu said.