People will ask PM Modi to resign if job crisis continues: Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut

Shiv Sena parliamentarian Sanjay Raut on Sunday said that the people of India may seek the resignation of Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi if the issues of unemployment and economic crisis are not resolved soon.

Criticising the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led central government over the handling of the economic crisis caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, Raut in his weekly column Rokhthok, in party mouthpiece Saamana, said 10 crore people have lost their livelihoods and 40 crore families are affected by the situation.

“How long will people spend their days on mere hopes and assurances? In the past 15 years, not a single problem has been resolved. Israeli PM [Benjamin] Netanyahu is a friend of PM Modi. Due to the economic crisis and Covid-related problems, the people of Israel are holding demonstrations on the streets and are demanding Netanyahu’s resignation. The same situation can also happen in India,” the Rajya Sabha Member of Parliament (MP) said in the column.

Raut added that with so many job losses, economic leadership has become more important than the leadership in the battlefield. “Millions are sitting unemployed today. Innumerable claims of inflation, poverty and unemployment have erupted in the society. So, economic leadership is more important than leadership in the battlefield,” the Shiv Sena leader said, adding, “Nobody is talking about the crisis. It is easy to say that crisis gives rise to opportunity. But they [government] don’t know how people are dealing with the crisis.”

In a dig at the BJP, Raut said the central government’s measures to tackle the economic situation include procuring Rafale fighter jets, reciting Hanuman Chalisa , destabilising Rajasthan government and coming back to power in Maharashtra on its own.

“The stoves of 40 crore families have been extinguished. What is the solution to their problems? Bhoomipujan of Ram temple will be done. BJP needs Rajasthan, it will happen. Rafale aircraft from France also came to Ambala. But how are those who lost jobs in this period coping with the situation? Will the rulers ever tell them?” the Saamana executive editor asked sarcastically.

The Sena leader also criticised the government for “celebrating” Rafale’s homecoming amid the “grave threat” of Covid-19 in India. He wrote previous governments have procured other fighter jets such as Sukhoi and MiG aircraft, but such a “celebration” was never carried out. “Will Rafale jets with the bomb and missile-carrying capacity be able to destroy the unemployment crisis and economic challenges?” Raut asked.

He added that the situation will force many citizens to be “slaves” again. “Earlier, the British enslaved Indians and took them to Fiji, Mauritius, Guyana and Suriname. People will be willing to go as slaves to such places even now. And if the rulers do not acknowledge this, then they can continue their celebrations over Rafale,” he said.