Dubbing the Union Budget for 2022-23 as “most disappointing”, “meaningless” and “directionless” the ruling Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) leaders on Tuesday castigated for doing “gross injustice” to Maharashtra and for its failure to provide employment, address issues of farmers and to live up the expectations of the people.
Hitting out at the "disappointing" and "directionless" Union Budget, Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray of the Shiv Sena said amid rising unemployment, inflation and falling incomes, the Budget presented by Nirmala Sitharaman had caused "uneasiness and anxiety" among the common people.
“The Union Budget is most disappointing. It has failed to meet expectations of common people. There is disappointment among the general public and also employees. There is no concrete answer to rising unemployment in the country. Without fulfilling any of the dreams presented to the people earlier, the Centre has come out with new dreams for the people in the budget. But the budget shows no direction to fulfil the dreams of the past and the present, he said.
“The budgetary provision for rural development and NREGA has been reduced. This will not only create difficulties in the development of rural areas but will also affect various schemes implemented for farmers through NREGA. How can farmers' income be doubled in such a situation?’’ the chief minister wondered.
“The Covid-19 has hit every sector of the economy especially the MSMEs or jobs while dependence has increased on agriculture, but nothing has been said to address these critical issues,” Uddhav said.
Deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar, who handles the finance portfolio in Maharashtra, charged that the Narendra Modi government had done “gross injustice”. “Even if we go through the budgetary estimates minutely, we do not find even a single sop for Maharashtra in the budget. During the current year, the centre has raised a total revenue of Rs 2.20 lakh crore by way of GST. Of the revenue, Maharashtra has contributed as much as Rs 48,000 crore to the Central kitty. What Maharashtra got in return is mere Rs 4,500 crore. This is nothing but gross injustice to Maharashtra,” Pawar said.
Pawar said that the budget was full of hollow announcements and even the claim of it being a ‘blueprint for 25 years’ development “will go up in the air like similar ones of Make In India of ‘Atmanirbhar India”.
Congress Legislative Party leader and Revenue Minister Balasaheb Thorat said while unemployment has skyrocketed to its highest levels ever, the government was presenting “false dreams” of new 60-lakh jobs without any strategy, either to protect existing jobs or for opening up newer employment opportunities.
“The budget has disappointed all sections of the society. There is nothing for farmers, labourers, middle-class, small traders, women, unemployed, students, Dalits or minorities. Only a few industrialist friends of the BJP government have benefitted from the budget,” Thorat said.
Terming the Union budget as “directionless” and “meaningless”, Maharashtra Congress president Nana Patole said that the budget had failed to provide relief to the beleaguered farmers, workers, common man and the unemployed youth of the country. “The Government has extended many concessions to the industrialist friends of the BJP. It has once again disappointed the genuine middle class taxpayer by not changing the tax slabs''
“A 'futuristic ICT budget', in which we hope the deliverables are a reality, not just VR?! Good luck,” NCP MP Supriya Sule tweeted
Maharashtra Minister and NCP’s chief spokesperson Nawab Malik said the Union budget has come as a “huge disappointment” for the common citizens, who are facing high inflation and expected some tax relief.
Former CM Ashok Chavan came down heavily on the BJP leaders for calling the budget as ‘historic’ and said the Finance Minister's speech was the shortest in years, implying the government had nothing to say.
“Though the FM used verses from Mahabharata and big words like ‘Amritkal’ or ‘Gatishakti’, it turned out to be an empty budget on all counts and to cover up its failures, the government has shown a new carrot of 25 years development,” Chavan said.
“The budget has given no relief to the middle class with regard to the Income Tax. There is no reference to the Prime Minister's vision of making India a $5 trillion economy,” Shiv Sena MP Vinayak Raut said..
Meanwhile, the Leader of Opposition in the State Assembly Devendra Fadnavis said the budget was ‘ahead of the times’ with the country set to become even more ‘self-reliant’.
“Extremely progressive, futuristic, inclusive, not a single sector or geographical region left uncared… It proves how India is progressing ahead at a very fast speed with a very powerful engine,” Fadnavis said.