A day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a meeting with senior NITI Aayog officials and leading economists as part of the wider consultations in the run-up to the Union Budget 2024-25, Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav slammed the National Democratic Alliance government on the pre-budget show. The Modi government 3.0 will present its first full budget on July 23.

“The show of pre-budget meetings is just an illusion. They pretend to consult when there is arbitrariness to cheat the public. Most of the ministries in the government have become ‘man-traalay’ (mind trials). When the ministers have not changed then how will there be changes in the budget? This period of economic crisis will continue to push people into the quagmire of problems and inflation,” the SP president wrote on social site ‘X’ on Friday.

“Due to the Bharatiya Janata Party government’s disastrous economic policies of demonetisation, GST, high taxes on the common man and low taxes on rich companies, 63 lakh units of unorganised informal businesses have closed down in the country. Due to this, unemployment has also reached record levels. In such circumstances, when the budget is to be presented after 10 days, will the government take suggestions from anyone and will it make any changes in the already prepared budget,” Akhilesh Yadav said.

“The lack of improvement in the economic conditions that have arisen after a tragedy like COVID-19 is the failure of the BJP government’s economic mismanagement,” he added.

Akhilesh Yadav claimed the budget of the BJP government is not made on the suggestions but on the instructions of some people. In matters of economic policies, the role of the BJP government has been no more than that of a typist and it is not good for the government to remain just a stenographer, he added.

“The objective of the budget should be the development of the country while providing relief to the public but they are not performing their duty,” the SP chief said.