Sun Jan 19 10:20:32 UTC 2025: ## Congress Accuses Modi Government of Creating “Unease in Doing Business” Ahead of Union Budget
**New Delhi, January 19, 2025** – The Congress party launched a scathing attack on the Modi government on Sunday, accusing its policies of eroding investor confidence and transforming the “ease of doing business” into “unease in doing business.” Ahead of the upcoming Union Budget, senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh issued a statement outlining the party’s concerns.
Ramesh argued that the government’s policies have led to a significant decline in private domestic investment, falling from 25-30% of GDP under the previous Manmohan Singh administration to 20-25% in the last decade. This, he claimed, is accompanied by a mass exodus of high-net-worth individuals, with over 17.5 lakh Indians acquiring foreign citizenship in the past ten years, including an estimated 21,300 dollar millionaires between 2022 and 2025.
Ramesh attributed this decline to three key factors: a complex GST system with numerous tax rates leading to significant evasion; unabated Chinese imports resulting in a record trade deficit of $85 billion in 2023-24; and stagnant wages and weak consumption, further hampered by a decline in real agricultural wages under the current government.
He called the current tax regime “tax terrorism,” citing a complicated GST system and high income tax rates as major deterrents to investment. He also highlighted the negative impact of Chinese imports on Indian manufacturing, particularly in labor-intensive sectors.
To remedy the situation, the Congress demanded that the upcoming budget address these issues by eliminating what it termed “raid raj and tax terrorism,” protecting Indian manufacturing jobs, and boosting wages and purchasing power to stimulate domestic investment. Ramesh emphasized the need for “radical action” to reverse the damage inflicted on India’s business environment.
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