‘Zindagi ke saath bhi, zindagi ke baad bhi’: PM Modi hits out at Congress
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi Thursday sharpened his attack on the Congress party as India goes to poll for the second phase in the general elections, over what he described as its “dangerous intentions”, citing Sam Pitroda’s comments on an inheritance tax in the United States. The comment by Pitroda has added fuel to a raging debate over wealth distribution in India’s politically charged election season.
Citing Pitroda’s statement, PM Modi attacked the Congress for allegedly looting the people with the jibe – “Zindagi ke saath bhi, Zindagi ke baad bhi”.
“The people, who have considered the Congress as their ancestral property and given it to their children, don’t want Indians to give their property to their children,” PM Modi said.
Emphasizing the need for policy towards wealth redistribution, Pitroda – the Chairman of Indian Overseas Congress had elaborated on the concept of inheritance tax prevailing in America. “In America, there is an inheritance tax. If one has $100 million worth of wealth and when he dies he can only transfer probably 45 percent to his children, 55 percent is taken by the government,” he said.
Pitroda added, “That’s an interesting law. It says you in your generation made wealth and you are leaving now, you must leave your wealth for the public, not all of it, half of it, which to me sounds fair.”
After facing a huge backlash from the BJP, Pitroda attempted to clarify his position and said that remarks were made in an individual capacity. “It is unfortunate that what I said as an individual on inheritance tax in the U.S. is twisted…to divert attention from what lies the PM is spreading about the Congress manifesto,” Pitroda posted on X.
Pitroda is a senior Congress leader and once a close confidant of the Gandhi family, is no stranger to political controversies and is known to often stir a row with his remarks on contentious or rather sensitive issues.
In June 2023, at an event in the U.S., Pitroda said that no one in India talks about inflation, employment, and education and only discusses Ram, and Mandir. He made these remarks in the presence of party leader Rahul Gandhi.
Pitroda had also received sharp criticism for his remarks on the Balakot surgical strike, where he supported Pakistan. “Attack happened in Mumbai also. We could have then reacted and just sent our planes. But that is not the correct approach. Naive to assume that just because some people came here and attacked, every citizen of that nation is to be blamed,” he reportedly said after Balakot strike.
Ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, during a TV interview, Pitroda said that the middle class should pay more taxes to guarantee a minimum income for poor households, asking them not to be “selfish.”
In an another incident during the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, when the BJP claimed that “instructions” for the 1984 anti-Sikh riots came from Rajiv Gandhi, Pitroda, denied the charge but said, “Ab kya hai ’84 ka? Aapne kya kiya 5 saal mein, uski baat kariye. ’84 mein hua to hua. Aapne kya kiya?” Pitroda later apologized for the remarks.
