Congress questions rail privatisation

NEW DELHI: The Congress on Monday asked the Prime Minister to explain what it termed his flip-flop on the issue of privatising Railways, and alleged that while his government was facilitating privatisation by stealth, Narendra Modi was shying away from owning it up in public.

According to the AICC, by allowing 100% foreign direct investment in all sectors of railways, “the NDA government has left only the engine driver and guards as the last symbols of government control in the Indian Railways.”

According to AICC spokesman Abhishek Singhvi, the PM has been making “serial U-turns” on the privatisation issue. In March, Modi, then as BJP’s prime ministerial candidate, made a strong pitch for privatising railways, and reiterated the same stance in November after flagging off the first train to the Northeast, he said. Then what prompted the same Prime Minister to rule out privatisation of railways while making a speech in Varanasi by saying all the talks about privatising railways were only a misunderstanding and that the NDA government has no such plans, Singhvi asked. “But the truth is different,” he said. “In the railway budget, the government promised to seek foreign and private funding for railways. ”