While the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) hailed the Union Budget-2024, calling it middle-class centric and a roadmap for growth, the Opposition disagreed. While the Congress alleged that the budget was copied from its manifesto for the recent Lok Sabha polls, the Trinamool Congress said it had left out the Opposition-ruled states.
Top lawmakers and leaders celebrated the Union Budget-2024 presented by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in Parliament on Tuesday and shared what they felt was the best part of the budget. Here’s a list of who said what.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday hailed the Union Budget for its sharp focus on youth, backward sections, women and middle class as also on manufacturing and infrastructure sectors, and asserted that the proposed employment-linked incentive schemes will create crores of new jobs.
“This visionary budget will uplift and empower every stratum of our society, paving the way for a brighter future for all,” Modi said in televised remarks on the Union Budget presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.
Home Minister Amit Shah
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday said Budget 2024-25 will fuel the country’s pace on the path of emerging as a developed nation by ushering in a new era of employment and opportunities.
The budget not only exemplifies the country’s newfound sense of purpose, hope and optimism under Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led NDA government but also fortifies them, Shah said.
“Harnessing the power of Bharat’s youth, Nari Shakti and farmers, the budget fuels the nation’s pace on the path of emerging as a developed nation by ushering in a new era of employment and opportunities,” he wrote on ‘X’ with the hashtag #BudgetForViksitBharat.
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Tuesday said the budget, presented by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, laid down a “solid roadmap to maintain India’s growth momentum”.
He also said the 2024 Union budget stands out for its “unprecedented push” towards employment generation and powering small businesses.
”My compliments to Hon’ble Union Minister Smt @nsitharaman ji and her team for presenting a budget that lays down a solid roadmap to maintain India’s growth momentum and seeks to propel our economy to the world’s third largest, as envisioned by Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri @narendramodi ji”, the chief minister posted on X.
BJP chief JP Nadda
Union Minister and BJP Mational President JP Nadda said, “The first Union Budget for 2024-25 in the third term of Narendra Modi government stands as a testament to India’s commitment to inclusive growth, sustainable development and economic resilience. This visionary budget not only addresses the immediate needs of the nation but also lays down a robust framework for long-term prosperity, prioritizing infrastructure development, technological innovation and social welfare.”
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday thanked Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman for giving the highest allocation to the defence sector.
In a post on X, Rajnath Singh said, “As far as the allocation to the Ministry of Defence is concerned, I thank the Finance Minister for giving the highest allocation to the tune of Rs 6,21,940.85 Crore, which is 12.9 % of the total Budget of GoI for FY 2024-25. The capital outlay of Rs 1,72,000 Crore will further strengthen the capabilities of Armed Forces,” the Defence Minister said in a post on X.
WHAT ALLIES SAID
The Union Budget allocated substantial funds for Bihar where JD(U) is in power, including over Rs 26,000 crore for highway development and Rs 11,500 crore for flood mitigation efforts, while TDP-led Andhra Pradesh received significant financial aid, including Rs 15,000 crore for state capital’s development with ongoing commitments for future support.
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar expressed happiness over the allocations for his state in the Union Budget. He said, “I have continuously spoken for this (special status), I told them as well (NDA). I told them to give us either a special status or a special package. As a follow-up, they have announced aid for a lot of things. We were speaking of special status and a lot of people said that the provision for special status has been done away with much earlier. So, instead of that, aid should be given for helping Bihar. They have now started it.”
Andhra Pradesh Minister and Telugu Desam Party (TDP) leader Nara Lokesh said, I am extremely delighted and grateful for the Union Finance Minister’s announcements today in the Budget. These will go a long way towards helping AP achieve its development and social objectives. It’s a matter of great pride for the people of Andhra Pradesh that our struggle has been recognised, and a special and holistic package has been provided covering all important areas like industrial growth, infrastructure, irrigation and HRD.”
A new sunrise for Andhra PradeshI am extremely delighted and grateful for the Union Finance Minister’s announcements today in the Budget. These will go a long way towards helping AP achieve its development and social objectives.
It’s a matter of great pride for the people of…
— Lokesh Nara (@naralokesh) July 23, 2024
Opposition Says ‘Kursi bachao’ Move
Leaders from the Opposition-ruled states such as West Bengal, Telangana and Punjab expressed dissatisfaction over no allocations. Meanwhile, Congress claimed that the budget, especially the youth-centric part, was copied from its manifesto for the recent Lok Sabha polls. Some leaders also felt that the budget left out crucial topics like inflation.
BRS Leader KT Rama Rao
BRS Working President K T Rama Rao on Tuesday expressed disappointment with the Union Budget, alleging that Telangana received nothing.
Despite having a budget of more than Rs 48 lakh crores, only a few states received major benefits, he alleged.
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday presented the Budget for 2024-25. This is the first Budget during Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government’s third term in office.
Referring to BJP and Congress winning eight Lok Sabha seats each in Telangana (out of 17), Rama Rao said the people of the state should think as to what happened when they gave 16 seats to the two national parties. BRS drew a blank in the LS polls.
“It is disappointing that Telangana is not mentioned in the entire Budget. Once again, Telangana received nothing,” he said in a statement.
Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray
Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray on Tuesday said Maharashtra was not mentioned even once by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in her Union budget speech, and alleged bias against the state despite being the largest taxpayer.
In a post on X, Thackeray also accused the Centre of looting Maharashtra by installing a “corrupt regime” and then through taxes.
Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi
Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday dubbed the Union Budget a “kursi bachao budget” and claimed it makes “hollow promises” to BJP allies at the cost of other states.
The former Congress chief also claimed that the budget was “copy and paste” job of the Congress manifesto for 2024 polls and previous budgets.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the budget for 2024-25, her seventh straight presentation, surpassing the record of former prime minister Morarji Desai. This is the first budget in Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government’s third term in office.
NCP leader Supriya Sule
Nationalist Congress Party-Sharadchandra Pawar leader Supriya Sule said, “This Union Budget has missed the opportunity to address the critical issues of inflation, particularly the soaring rates of food inflation, and unemployment. It gives no relief to honest, tax-paying salaried employees, ignoring the urgent need for tax reforms, whilst the tax cuts announced for corporations in 2019 remain in place.”
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