PM clueless on virus, economy, says Rahul

Accusing the Narendra Modi government of not taking adequate measures to contain coronavirus, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, said here yesterday, “Our prime minister is clueless and sleeping.
“There is no preparation. The government is sleeping. They don’t realise that coronavirus is spreading in this country. It’s going to have devastating consequences. We are heading to the highway for an accident as a nation,” Rahul said addressing the media at the Parliament House.
“Only after when I tweeted on the Covid-19, the prime minister also started tweeting about it,” he said.
The coronavirus had worsened the already sinking Indian economy, Rahul said and added, it was not just affecting the people but the economy too. “We have got to start taking emergency measures now. It’s already too late,” the Congress leader said.
On the Yes Bank crisis, Rahul said during the Manmohan Singh regime when the country faced economic slowdown, the informal economy protected people.
“Manmohan Singh and the UPA government handled the economy well for 10 years. But you (PM) spoiled it completely. It’s just the beginning of destruction. He started the destruction when he imposed demonetisation and GST. People are going to face the full shock. Youths must ask the prime minister what has he done for their employment in these six years,” he said.
“The prime minister is busy saving Yes Bank by using people’s hard-earned money,” Rahul said.
Earlier Congress spokesman Randeep Singh Surjewala termed the government response on coronavirus as “knee jerk” and said it had no idea about the spread and was not prepared for the pandemic.
The government didn’t made early preparations as such a large country couldn’t be quarantined. The government was only filling a form and checking temperatures at the airport, he alleged.
He also pointed to shortage of face-masks and rising prices of hand sanitisers in Delhi.
The Delhi government yesterday announced closure of all cinema halls and education institutions, where examinations were not continuing, till March 31 to check the spread of coronavirus.