New Delhi, Sep 4 (IANS) BJP MP Sambit Patra launched a sharp attack on the Congress on Thursday, accusing the party of wasting 75 years of India’s governance by offering only slogans such as “Garibi Hatao” while failing to implement meaningful reforms. Addressing a press conference at the BJP headquarters in New Delhi, Patra drew a direct line of criticism from former Prime Ministers Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, and Rajiv Gandhi to Sonia Gandhi, calling the Congress record “a story of missed opportunities and empty promises.”

Patra said the Congress “did nothing to remove poverty” despite ruling for decades. “First Prime Minister Nehru, then his daughter Indira Gandhi, followed by her son Rajiv Gandhi, and later Sonia Gandhi as a shadow Prime Minister-- none of them delivered. Today, Rahul Gandhi hasn’t been given this chance by the people,” he remarked. Taking aim at the Congress, he said, “Whenever something good happens in the country, Congress finds a reason to mourn.” The BJP leader contrasted this with the Modi government’s economic and tax reforms, particularly in the Goods and Services Tax (GST). Patra stressed that while the Congress had the opportunity to bring a unified tax structure, it failed to act.

“They had the opportunity to bring GST and simplify the tax system before us, but all they gave was the slogan ‘Garibi Hatao,’” he said. Highlighting the recent GST rate cuts announced on Thursday, Patra claimed the reforms would directly benefit households. “Headlines in newspapers today have brought a smile to people’s faces. Almost all items will become cheaper from September 22 -- the day Navratra begins,” he said.

Essential food items such as rice, wheat, and milk products, as well as medicines, healthcare services, farm products, tractor parts, bicycles, toothpaste, and even electronic goods, would see reduced rates, he added. He described the reduction in health and insurance premiums as the “biggest leap,” calling it a reform that would ease burdens for patients and families. “This is not just a reform; it is a bundle of happiness. Modi hai toh mumkin hai,” Patra declared.