UPA has no moral right to continue in office: BJP

On the eve of winter session of Parliament, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Wednesday alleged that the United Progressive Alliance government is pursuing anti-people economic policies like allowing FDI in multi-brand retail and, therefore, has no moral right to continue in office.

The Congress-led government is also 'mired in a slew of scams' depriving it of the right to govern, BJP vice-president Kalraj Mishra told reporters in Dehradun.

The decision to allow FDI in retail was taken under pressure of the United States and the European Union, he said adding the move will have 'disastrous consequences' for small shopkeepers.

The annual turnover of retail giants such as Walmart is the size of the country's annual budget, Mishra said. Allowing companies of Walmart's stature to set up shop in the country will deal a 'deadly blow' to small shopkeepers and farmers, he said.

Alleging the rich-poor divide under the UPA has widened, the BJP leader said an apalling 42 per cent of the country's population lives below poverty line and cited Suresh Tendulkar's report to support his argument.

"UPA's anti-people economic policies like FDI in retail and widespread corruption as reflected in slew of scams that swirl around the alliance deprive it of the right to govern," Mishra said.