BJP attacks govt for interest rate hike

NEW DELHI: The BJP on Thursday trained it guns on the Manmohan Singh government for raising the repo rate and CRR for the second time in a month, arguing that the move will hit the salaried and lower-middle classes.

���Besides affecting the livelihood of a large number of people, the decision to hike interest rates will severely hit the housing sector. The middle class and the salaried sections will be ravaged by the move, and their hopes of owning a house of their own will be shattered,��� senior BJP leader Venkaiah Naidu said here on Thursday.

The BJP sought to draw a comparison between the present situation and the interest rates prevailing during the NDA regime. ���The rate of interest then had fallen as low as 7%. It���s 14% now,������ he said, describing the UPA���s commitment to the aam aadmi (common man) as an eyewash.The high interest rate regime figures high in the list of electoral issues prepared by the party to be flogged in the coming round of polls.