Soojh-boojh ki sarkar, not suit-boot: Jaitley to Rahul

New Delhi: Taking a dig at Rahul Gandhi for his 56-day sabbatical, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Thursday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government was a "soojh-boojh ki sarkar", not "suit-boot ki sarkar" as claimed by the Congress vice-president recently.

Replying to a debate on the Finance Bill in the Lok Sabha, Jaitley with Modi seated beside him, also hit out at the Congress for politicising the farmers' issue, on a day Gandhi was in Maharashtra's Vidarbha to highlight the plight of farmers.

He said raking up farmers' issue "has become a tradition now. We should all be concerned about farmers. But nobody should be allowed to use farmers as a political instrument". "This is a 'soojh-boojh ki sarkar' (a wise government). Let there be no illusions about it," he said.

Targeting Gandhi, the senior Bharatyiya Janata Party leader said: "It is good to be suited but dangerous to be booted out." Reacting to Gandhi's taunt that Modi is often abroad, Jaitley quipped: "At least we know where the prime minister is... His trips are a national duty. There is a difference between a national duty and disappearance for a jaunt." Referring to Congress member KV Thomas' remarks that the prime minister made 16 foreign trips, Jaitley said India's stature in the comity of nations has increased.

"India is now a leader even in an area like disaster management. This is no mean achievement," he said.

“India is now a leader even in an area like disaster management. This is no mean achievement,” he said, referring to evacuation undertaken by India of nationals of 48 countries besides its own nationals from war-torn Yemen as also the rescue and relief help given to quake-ravaged Nepal.

Referring to a Congress charge that Modi is all-powerful and ministers have no powers, Jaitley said, “Yesterday your leader (Rahul Gandhi) found PM is outside the country, today you say he is hands-on PM and does not let other ministers work...make up your mind”.