Congress blames Modi govt for cancelling its rally over inflation

New Delhi: Lashing out at the BJP-led government, the Congress general secretary KC Venugopal on Wednesday alleged that the Centre has lost even the pretence of democratic propriety and has started behaving like a full-fledged authoritarian dictatorship as the government is not allowing issues of public interest to be raised in the House.

"Every time Congress tries to highlight the issues of skyrocketing inflation, record unemployment, a sinking economy, farmers' plight and labourers and the rights of Dalits, Adivasi and minority in the Parliament, the makes the House dysfunctional," the Congress leader said, adding that the both the Houses of the Parliament are simply not allowed to take up these issues and are adjourned on one pretext or the other.

"It is for the first time in 75 years that even journalists are not being allowed into the Press gallery, lest they see and report these sordid machinations of the government. Even as all-pervasive and debilitating inflation has started affecting all sections of society, the Centre rather than addressing rising prices is focused on increasing and collecting taxes," he said in a statement.

Hitting out at the government for cancelling the permission for "Mahangai hatao rally" at Dwarka in the national capital on December 12, Venugopal alleged that it's a conspiracy of the Modi government to not let Congress hold a rally which was aimed at waking up the slumbering government over the issues of the skyrocketing price of essential items.

"A jittery government obviously doesn't want that people take to streets and a people's protest movement takes shape over valid issues of unprecedentedly costly petrol, diesel and LPG cylinders, unaffordable edible oil and a burning food basket," he said.