Congress slams govt on white paper, terms it 'white lie paper'

New Delhi: The Congress on Friday alleged that the Modi government's white paper on the economy was a "white lie paper", and asserted that it should have come out with such a document on issues such as unemployment, demonetisation, border tensions and Manipur.

The government has come out with a white paper criticising the Congress-led UPA rule, saying it had turned the Indian economy into a non-performing one through indiscriminate revenue expenditure, off budget borrowings and pile of bad debts at banks.

Asked about the white paper by the government, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said, "This is not a white paper but a white lie paper. Our Congress president (Mallikarjun Kharge) yesterday released a black paper '10 saal anyay kaal'. The answer to this white paper is in that black paper. The black paper was a surgical strike on the white paper."

"The white paper (of the government) makes no mention of demonetisation, unemployment, inflation, and the rising economic disparity. The issues on which they should come out with a white paper is the border situation with China, border tensions, we have been demanding a white paper on that, they are silent on that," Ramesh told reporters outside Parliament.

He said the Congress has also been demanding a white paper on Manipur but the government has been "silent" on it.

"We had earlier asked for a white paper on demonetisation but they were silent on that also. There is no white paper on the 45-year high unemployment in the country....The white paper is yet another event. He (Modi) is an event manager as (L K) Advani ji had said," Ramesh said.

The government is "silent" on corruption and real issues like injustice to farmers, women and youth, he alleged.

"The PSUs are being sold to one or two of his friends," Ramesh alleged.

He also said that ports, airports, railway, factories, oil refineries are being privatised.

The Congress had alleged on Thursday that the government's white paper on the country's economy under the UPA rule is aimed at hiding "the dark truth" and said hunger, price rise, unemployment and abject poverty are a lived reality for a vast majority of Indians under the Narendra Modi government.