The Congress MPs claimed such meetings had turned into central-government-bashing events for the Gujarati govt.
Congress MPs in Gujarat today boycotted the meeting called by the state government to discuss pending issues with the Centre.
Congress MPs of both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha from the state skipped the meeting at which Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi was present.
The meetings of state MPs are routine and held before every session of Parliament and this was for the second time in a row that the Congress MPs boycotted the meeting.
"Our MPs are boycotting the meeting as such meetings have turned out to be central government bashing event for publicity by the ruling BJP government here," Congress spokesman Manish Doshi said.
"In the earlier meetings the government had refused to discuss the issues of Central Ministry pending with the state government like allocation of land for the railways and other departments for their expansion plans," Doshi alleged.
Three Congress MPs -Dinsha Patel, Tushar Chaudhary and Bharat Solanki- are Ministers in the central government.
The BJP has slammed the Congress for not attending the meeting. "The boycott of a meeting called to discuss pending development issues of the state shows that the Congress is not interested in the progress of Gujarat," BJP MP and
spokesperson Vijay Rupani said.
"These meetings are organised for the development of the state. If genuine issues of the state are taken up in the Parliament getting above the party line, it makes an impact and helps in getting them resolved," Rupani said.
During the meeting held in Gandhinagar, Modi listed out 67 issues of the state which are pending with the central government that include crude oil royalty, grants for education, coal procurement for power plants, natural gas allocation for power plants, the issue of fishermen taken hostage by Pakistan among others.
Modi also told the BJP MPs present at the meeting to raise the issue of negative publicity being given to Gujarat by national broadcasters like Doordarshan and All India Radio.
Modi said, "The central government is doing injustice to Gujarat due to their wrong policies and political discrimination".
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}