On eve of Gujarat poll, BJP comes out with 'Resolution Letter'

Gandhinagar, Dec 8 : The BJP on Friday released its 'Resolution Letter' with promises for the Gujarat voters, a day before polling in the assembly elections' first phase, with Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley hitting out at the Congress for its "impossible" assurances to the Patidar community.

Releasing the 'Sankalp Patra 2017', Jaitley termed the Congress manifesto, released two days back, to be "constitutionally impossible" and "financially improbable if not impossible".

Quoting figures from Crisil, which has ranked Gujarat to be top among the big states with highest GSDP growth in last five years, he said: "Gujarat has recorded an average growth rate of 10 per cent in last five years, that too at a time when there was no boom in global or national economy... the statistics speak for themselves and answers those who question the Gujarat growth model." 

Jaitley said that infrastructure, port economy, agriculture growth, health and education, weaker sections "would be the focus areas of our Sankalp Patra" and the party "would work to keep Gujarat one and worry about all sections of the society". 

He also said that the document focused on maintaining the high growth rate recorded by Gujarat in the coming years.

Jaitley also slammed the Congress' poll promises, saying that the concessions offered by it looked "financially improbable", as against the state's revenue of Rs 90,000 crore, the party had promised additional financial concessions worth Rs 1.21 lakh crore. It has also promised to waive Rs 20,000 crore as farm debt. 

"This means that the revenue will drop to Rs 70,000 crore and then you have to pay salaries, administration costs, infrastructure building...," he said.

On the promise of quotas to Patidar community by Congress, Jaitley said that it was nothing but a "constitutional impossibility" for any quota beyond 50 per cent. However he did not answer as to the promises the BJP would be giving and to a question that whatever that was mentioned in the 'Resolution Letter' was a repetition of the party's 2012 manifesto.