New Delhi: The Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge, on Wednesday slammed the Union Budget accusing the Modi government of being discriminatory.
Congress President Kharge also termed it a Budget aimed at self-preservation, alleging that Andhra Pradesh and Bihar received undue favouritism at the expense of other states.
Participating in the discussion on Budget in the Upper House, Kharge termed it a 'kursi bachao' (saving one’s chair) Budget where Andhra Pradesh and Bihar received 'disproportionate' benefits.
"Only two states have ‘Pakora’ and ‘Jalebi’ on their plates; the rest got nothing," the Congress veteran said.
“This Budget is just to satisfy their allies… The rest of the states are not even named in the Budget. From Maharashtra to Karnataka, the plates are empty. I was expecting Karnataka to get more as the Finance Minister (Nirmala Sitharaman) represents the state. But from Karnataka to Tamil Nadu, and Maharashtra to Haryana, no state got anything,” he added.
Meanwhile, the Rajya Sabha also saw moments of levity amid the heated debate over the Budget, as Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar corrected Kharge for addressing Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman as 'Mataji' (mother).
During the discussion, Kharge said, “I have never seen a Budget like this. This Budget was meant for appeasement and to save their chair. We condemn this."
Dhankhar then urged Kharge to let Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman respond.
"Main bol leta hun. Mataji bolne mein toh expert hain mujhe maloom hai (Let me finish. I know 'mataji' is an expert at speaking)," Kharge said.
"Not Mataji, she's like a daughter to you," Dhankhar remarked, evoking laughter from the MPs on the treasury as well as opposition benches.
Kharge continued his criticism of the government, alleging that states where the electorate did not support Prime Minister Narendra Modi were neglected.
“Those who are with you today will be with others tomorrow. The government has not given anything to those states where people rejected the BJP,” he claimed, referring to states like Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra where the ruling party saw a major drop in seats.
On Tuesday, the Modi government unveiled substantial financial packages for Andhra Pradesh and Bihar in the Union Budget.
An allocation of Rs 15,000 crore was earmarked for the development of Andhra Pradesh in the current fiscal with promises of additional funds in the coming years.
Similarly, Bihar received an infrastructure bonanza exceeding Rs 58,000 crore from the Modi government.
IANS with edits