New Delhi, Aug 16 (PTI) The Congress Tuesday accused the BJP government of practising "destructive federalism" rather than cooperative federalism Prime Minister Narendra Modi talked about in his Independence Day speech.

Congress spokesperson Gaurav Vallabh alleged the Centre interferes in the jurisdiction of states over several issues including agricultural laws and the deployment of paramilitary forces in border states.

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His statement came a day after Prime Minister Modi called for cooperation among states in taking the country forward and said they should practise "competitive federalism" alongside "cooperative federalism".

"The prime minister says repeatedly that he wants to run the government with cooperative federalism, but this government believes in destructive federalism, not cooperative federalism," Vallabh told reporters here Tuesday.

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"The prime minister says whatever good is happening, it is to his credit. If anything goes wrong, he says it is the responsibility of state governments to speak on," Vallabh said, citing the examples of handling of coronavirus, building hospitals, and providing Remdesevir or oxygen cylinders.

"The prime minister should make a list of his responsibilities rather than just giving speeches," he said, adding prime ministers too have to work.

"The prime minister's duty is not fulfilled by mere oral speeches," the Congress leader said.

PM Modi had said on Monday, "It is the need of the hour that besides cooperative federalism, we need cooperative competitive federalism. We need competition in development."

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)