The Congress on Sunday released a seven-point list on the seventh anniversary of the Narendra Modi government, noting the areas where the dispensation at the Centre has failed.

The Congress accused the Bharatiya Janata Party of fuelling unemployment and inflation, ruining the economy, attacking farmers, lacking sympathy for the poor, tampering with national security and mismanaging the coronavirus pandemic.

In its statement, the Congress claimed that due to the BJP’s mismanagement, the Gross Domestic Product of the country dropped to 4.2% in 2019-’20 from 8.6% in 2014, when Modi came to power. “It is for the first time in 73 years that the country is going through such economic crisis,” the party said.

The Congress pointed out that even the per capita income of neighbouring Bangladesh was higher than that of India’s in 2020-’21.

On unemployment, the Congress said that the Modi government had promised 2 lakh jobs per year. “Far from giving 14 crore jobs in seven years, there is the highest unemployment in the country in 45 years,” it said.

The party said that the coronavirus pandemic has broken the backs of India’s citizens. It said that while the official death count is 3,22,512 [as of Saturday], the real toll was actually much higher.

The statement said that the Congress and experts had warned the government about a possible oxygen shortage, but it continued exporting 9,000 metric tonnes of the gas till January. The party accused the Centre of exporting remdesivir doses, and also alleged that the “government was sleeping” while other countries were placing orders for vaccine shortage.

“Can the Modi government explain that when there is not enough vaccine for the citizens of the country, why did it export 6.63 crore vaccines to different countries? the Congress asked.

The party further alleged that the BJP has failed to protect the county and its borders. Citing the conflict with China along the Line of Control in Ladakh, the Congress said that the Centre could not even push back the incursion.

“Neither extremism has been controlled nor Naxalism,” the party said, adding that the government has no strategies to do it.

Speaking about inflation, the Congress said that the prices of items from fertilisers to oil are skyrocketing. The party said that when the Modi government came to power, the price of crude oil was $108 and the cost of petrol was Rs 71.51 and that of diesel Rs 55.49. “But the Modi government imposed senseless taxes on petrol and diesel and robbed the public of Rs 22 lakh crore.”

Citing the three farm laws that have faced vehement protest, the party said that the Centre wanted to use the legislations to snatch away the livelihood of farmers and give it to its “capitalist friends”.

The Congress claimed that while the United Progressive Alliance government brought 27 crore citizens out of poverty, the BJP pushed 23 crore of them back into it. “Remember, the promise was to give Rs 15-15 lakh in every bank account, but it [the government] has avoided giving even Rs 1,500.”