The Opposition on Wednesday trashed the first general Budget of the Narendra Modi-led Government dubbing it as “uninspiring” and “devoid of any new vision and big picture.”
Former Commerce Minister during the previous Congress-led UPA regime Anand Sharma said even if the Gods - Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh - come on this earth, they will not be able to fulfil the dreams sold to Indians by this BJP-led government during the poll campaign. Without naming Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Sharma obliquely referred to him alleging that concentration and consolidation of power in the hands of one individual is an unhealthy practice and could prove counter-productive.
Participating in the discussion in the Rajya Sabha on the Budget, Sharma attacked Finance Minister Arun Jaitely for failing to acknowledge the contribution of the Manmohan Singh-led dispensation in ushering in a healthy economy. “The people of the country were looking for more from the new Government as it catapulted into power by selling dreams,” said Sharma.
The former Commerce Minister also slammed the Government for holding the UPA-II responsible for passing a “weak economy”, saying this was not “a fair comment” as “we have left a very healthy economy and you know that”. Highlighting the growth recorded in different sectors of the economy during the Congress-led UPA rule, he said forex reserve of the country has trebled to USD 315 billion even as petroleum imports have gone up manifold.
“Exports also went up. It was perhaps because of partisan politics which prompted the BJP to highlight the country’s economy as weak,” he said, adding as elections are over now, the new Government should acknowledge the fact that “we have not left a weak economy” as “facts do not lie.”
Stating that some of the budget proposals were directly lifted from the previous budget, he tried to highlight the double standard of the ruling party on the proposal of raising foreign direct investment limit in insurance sector. He also took up the Goods and Services Tax (GST) issue to justify the point. Sharma said the proposal was opposed by the BJP-ruled States including Gujarat.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has proposed implementation of GST in his maiden budget, saying “It’s time to implement GST.” Sukhendu Sekhar Roy of the TMC said the Budget does not take care of the common man and termed as “laughable” the meagre provision of Rs 100 crore each for Beti Bachao and for setting up of new ventures which gives only Rs 2.77 crore to each State and Union Territory. Roy slammed Jaitley for announcing 25 schemes with Rs 100 crore allocation each and another 40 with Rs 50 crore allocation each.
BJP member Bhupender Yadav complimented the Finance Minister for presenting a budget that takes care of all sections. He said the budget will not only take the country on the path of speedy economic development but also ensure human development. BSP member Rajpal Singh Saini said farmer community is not being taken care of in this budget.