UPA lacks will to recover black money: BJP

PATNA: The BJP has accused the Congress-led UPA government of "lacking will" to recover the black money stashed in foreign banks.

"Unlike countries like Philippines and Peru which had successfully pursued recovery of their black money stashed abroad, our government lacked the will to do so," BJP president Nitin Gadkari said at a party function here on Saturday.

Contrary to its claim to have pursued the black money issue with foreign countries, the UPA government has made no concrete efforts to bring back about Rs 22.50 lakh crores of ill-gotten national wealth stashed abroad, he alleged.

He also criticised the government for opposing to reveal the names of Indians who have stashed ill-gotten wealth in foreign banks, in spite of the prodding by the supreme court and demands being made from several quarters.

The BJP leader said AICC general secretary Rahul Gandhi had said the black money should be brought back but "what prevents him to ask the Centre to take necessary steps in this regard?"

"Mere statements on the black money issue will not do... Rahul should take up the matter with the government," he said.

Blaming UPA for price rise, Gadkari said the country is passing through a "difficult" time due to its faulty policies.

"The country is beset with a host of problems like inflation and price rise, even as the UPA government headed by an economist prime minister is clueless as to how to deal with these issues affecting the common man," he said.

Gadkari said the country has always faced the brunt of price rise whenever Congress has been in power at the Centre and so was the case with corruption.