Rebel BJP leader Shatrughan Sinha once again criticised his party while praising Congress president Rahul Gandhi for his “masterstroke” by announcing a mega scheme that guarantees minimum financial assistance to the poor.

Taking potshots at his party, he said the announcement has left BJP leaders “rattled that some prominent people had to rush for a press conference, calling the whole declaration a ‘deceit'”.

It’s a masterstroke by the ‘master of situation’, @RahulGandhi – declaring #MinimumIncomeGuarantee scheme. It has rattled our people so much that some of our prominent people had to rush for a press conference, calling the whole declaration/ announcement “chhal kapat”.

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— Shatrughan Sinha (@ShatruganSinha) 26 March 2019

He further questioned if it was fair for the ruling government to announce various “jumlaas like the Rs 15 Lakh promise to every individual, farm loan waivers and subsidies and over 2 crore jobs for the youth every year”.

Would like to know from our learned friends / leadership – that when you announced various ‘jumlaas’….15 Lacs to every individual, farmers’ loan waivers & subsidies, more than 2 crore jobs for the youth every year, etc. etc..Was all this fair?

— Shatrughan Sinha (@ShatruganSinha) 26 March 2019

Gandhi on Monday announced a Minimum Income Guarantee scheme called Nyuntam Aay Yojana (NYAY) under which 25 crore poor people (5 crore families) in the country will get financial assistance of Rs 72,000 per annum if his party is voted to power at the Centre.

The name, NYAY – an acronym that means Justice in Hindi – was reportedly coined by his sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra in Ahmedabad.

Rahul Gandhi said the scheme will supplement income of those earning Rs 12,000 per month.

Read | Rahul Gandhi announces mega NYAY scheme for 20% of India’s poor

Gandhi’s announcement will reportedly cost the exchequer Rs 3.6 lakh crore – a massive cost that has made critics raise questions on Congress’ election promise.

Reacting to the announcement, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had said that the Congress sop for poor was “a bluff”, and slammed the party for its “history of not doing anything for the poor”.

Addressing a press conference in New Delhi hours after Gandhi announced a mega scheme for 20 per cent of India’s poor, Jaitley said that the Congress has only indulged in deception and “handed slogans” to the poor instead of eradicating poverty.

Jaitley said that both the Nehruvian model of economics and Indira Gandhi’s ‘garibi hatao’ slogan failed to eliminate poverty from India.

The BJP had earlier on Saturday dropped Modi critic Shatrughan Sinha from its list in Bihar, announcing Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad as its candidate from Patna Sahib.

The actor-politician, who served as a Cabinet minister in the NDA ministry of Atal Bihari Vajpayee and was a star campaigner for BJP for a long time before falling out with the current leadership after being ignored in the 2015 Bihar Assembly polls, has been critical of the party functioning, alleging all power is vested in one leader (Prime Minister Narendra Modi) and two-men Army (Modi and BJP president Amit Shah).