‘Only creating beneficiaries’: Opposition slams Assam Budget as solely focused on 2026 election

The financial assistance programmes include Rs 2,500 per month for a year to those graduating from government universities and colleges in Assam, a one-time grant of Rs 25,000 for research scholars, and a one-time payment of Rs 50,000 to all tea garden workers in the state.

Opposition parties across the board accused the BJP of farming beneficiaries of these schemes for votes in the 2026 elections. AIUDF MLA Rafiqul Islam also pointed to Neog announcing that several of these schemes would be operational starting from October this year.

“Women, youth, BA pass students – they have selected a group of beneficiaries. There is no discussion on education… For the development of education as a whole, they have no such thing as an idea. Ultimately, they are only creating beneficiaries… it seems they are completely in election mode. And if you see, most of the schemes announced are to be launched from October. The Budget is passed in March. Why don’t they (the schemes) get launched earlier? They will be launched in October so that two-three months later, elections will come and these will be fresh so they can gather the votes of these beneficiaries,” he said.

Sivasagar MLA Akhil Gogoi – also the president of the regional outfit, Raijor Dol – said, “There is nothing in this Budget. The only idea is for the 2026 Assembly election (and) who they can take votes from (and) who they can give money to. Apart from giving money for beneficiary schemes, apart from individual beneficiary schemes, this Budget does not have anything.”

Congress leader Debrata Saikia, Leader of the Opposition, said: “If they keep giving money in this way, in the future how will they collect tax? Or has the Chief Minister decided that somehow or the other, he need to get across by taking loans and debts. What is their plan for the state to have the capacity to return this? We didn’t see it in the Budget. In the first Budget, he had said that we have to enable people not just to eat fish but to catch it. But now, by constantly giving DBTs in accounts, they are only teaching how to eat fish.”

The Asom Jatoya Parishad – a regional outfit that does not have any representation in the Assembly – alleged that the Budget is “politically motivated” and “does not contain any notable provisions of development”.