The Congress on Thursday hit back at BJP chief J P Nadda over his "Maoist thinking" barb, saying the opposition party's thinking is not Maoist but constitutional and economic equalities are a "serious concern" Nadda had recently said the Congress' thinking on economic inequalities was Maoist in nature.

Slamming the BJP chief, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said, "J P Nadda is known as Jagat Prakash Nadda but it seems he has caught on the Prime Minister's disease and he has become Jhooth Prachar Nadda...he said that the Congress party's thinking on economic inequalities is Maoist in nature." "There cannot be a bigger lie than this," Ramesh added.

Quoting from the Constitution, Ramesh cited Articles 38 and 39 and said that the economic inequalities and the concentration of economic power that the Congress is talking about is not Maoist thinking but constitutional thinking.

"They are the basic ideas of the Constitution. It is the principle of Babasahab Ambedkar's Constitution. I would give one example, Article 39B says 'operation of the economic system does not result in the concentration of wealth and means of production to the common detriment'. This is what the Congress is saying, economic inequalities are a serious concern," he said.

Ramesh said 21 billionaires have amassed the wealth that 70 crore Indians have.

In another post, Ramesh said, "The Congress Nyay Patra promises a progressive overhaul of India's tax code. This will change the tax environment for MSMEs, the salaried class, and professionals." "Most importantly, we will dispel this atmosphere of fear and intimidation that surrounds taxpayers, and eliminate the draconian powers vested with tax authorities," he said.

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