Cong alleges Centre's ''incompetence'' responsible for India's woes during second COVID-19 wave

New Delhi: The Congress on Saturday alleged that the country paid the price for the Modi government’s “incompetence” during the second wave of COVID-19.

“When the Modi government should have finalised public health policy to take on the coronavirus on a war footing, it was busy saving the illusory image of the prime minister,” it alleged on its Twitter handle.

“We lost our brothers and sisters due to this government’s incompetence, we will never forget,” the Congress tweeted as the opposition party and its leaders targeted the Centre over the handling of the pandemic with the hashtag “ZimmedarKaun” (who is responsible) and raised the issue of shortage of beds, oxygen and medicines when India was at the crest of the second wave.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said the public knows who is sitting silently even after the pandemic, inflation and unemployment.

“Every person in the country knows the one who is sitting silently even after seeing all –  the pandemic, inflation and unemployment,” he tweeted

Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra claimed that the world witnessed the prime minister’s “incompetence at governance” during the pandemic.

“He (the prime minister) simply retreated and waited for the worst to pass. The Prime Minister of India has behaved like a coward. He has let our country down,” she said in her statement posted on her Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts.

The prime minister’s “vast capacity for vanity” has been exposed, she alleged.

“Indians do not come first for him. Politics does. Truth does not concern him, propaganda does,” Priyanka Gandhi alleged and asserted that the time has come for the people to ask the prime minister “Zimmedaar Kaun”.

In another tweet, Rahul Gandhi called for further strengthening the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) saying the weaker sections of society have benefited the most from it due to the financial crisis after the lockdowns in the country.

“The weaker sections of the country are getting relief from MGNREGA this time too. It is necessary to further strengthen this scheme to deal with the financial crisis caused by the lockdown,” he said.

“Whichever government is there, the people belong to India and public interest is our responsibility,” he also said.

The Congress has been touting MGNREGA as the previous UPA government’s flagship scheme aimed at benefiting the rural poor by providing them social security and a guarantee of work.

Rahul Gandhi also tweeted on World Day Against Child Labour and said the children are the future and deserve education and smiles.

“Children are the future. They deserve education, health and smiles. Let’s make every day #WorldDayAgainstChildLabour,” he said on Twitter.