After Raj Babbar and Rasheed Masood, union Minister for New and Renewable Energy Farooq Abdullah also courts controversy, saying that Rs 1 is enough for a meal and it depended on the common man how much they could afford
After Raj Babbar and Rasheed Masood, now union Minister for New and Renewable Energy Farooq Abdullah yesterday said that one can have full meal for Rs 1.
“If you want, you can fill your stomach for Re 1 or Rs 100, depending on what you want to eat. It depends on the common man how much they can afford and they have to manage in that only,” Abdullah said.
ADVERTISEMENT
Food for thought:u00a0According to Farooq Abdullah, one can eat for Re 1, if desired. File Pic
Congress leader Rasheed Masood on Thursday claimed that “one can eat well” for Rs 5 in the capital, a day after Congress spokesperson Raj Babbar said that one can have a full meal for Rs 12 in Mumbai.
“You can eat well for Rs 5 in the Jama Masjid area of Delhi,” Masood, a Rajya Sabha member from the Congress, has said.u00a0However, later, Abdullah clarified his statement.
“My comments on the cost of a meal in the media have been taken out of context but I realise that what I said may be misconstrued. I regret any hurt this may have caused,” he said in a statement.
The comment opened floodgates of criticism with the BJP saying the government is just trying to perpetuate poverty.The Planning Commission on Tuesday said poverty ratio in the country had declined to 21.9 per cent in 2011-12 from 37.2 per cent in 2004-05 on account of increase in per capita consumption.
The commission estimated the 2011-12 national poverty line at Rs 816 per capita per month for rural areas and Rs 1,000 per capita per month for urban areas.
This would mean that the people whose daily consumption of goods and services exceed Rs 27.20 in villages and Rs 33.33 incities are not poor.
Cong seeks to end cheap meals controversy
The Congress yesterday sought to end the controversy around the remarks of its leaders Raj Babbar and Rashid Masood that a poor person could have a meal for Rs 12 and Rs 5. “Raj Babbar has issued a categorical statement expressing regret. So, it is better to treat the matter as closed,” Renuka Chowdhury said. u00a0
Subscribe today by clicking the link and stay updated with the latest news!" Click here!
