JDU-BJP-TDP alliance held by Fevicol-like bond: Lalan Singh

“Several parties here discussed that the Budget is to appease two states and to save the Government. What is the matter of saving the Government. This is a pre-poll alliance. Whether it is with us (JDU) or Telugu Desam Party (TDP), this is a pre-poll alliance and it is held together with a fevicol-like bond,” said the Minister, who goes by the alias Lalan Singh, during a discussion on the Budget in Lok Sabha.

In a veiled attack on the Congress and the RJD, JDU’s former allies in Bihar, Singh said, “We have seen your character too by being with you. You people attack like vultures… they used to do lobbying inside the alliance… we took our leave and moved on.”

Singh said that it appeared that the Opposition leaders’ speeches were only to criticise Prime Minister Narendra Modi as they “hate Modi’s face”. “But the people of this country liked his face and gave him the responsibility of forming the government for the third time,” Singh said, adding that the Opposition leaders were not seeing the provisions in the Budget for sectors like agriculture, education, defence and job creation.

“The Budget shows the commitment of the Modi Government towards making an atmanirbhar bharat. Modi ji is committed to the development of the entire country. We support this Budget,” Singh said.

Meanwhile, MDMK member Durai Vaiko condemned the Budget, saying Tamil Nadu had been neglected owing to “ideological differences”. He called it a “Nitish-Naidu budget” (referring to TDP chief and Andhra Pradesh CM Chandrababu Naidu and JDU chief and Bihar CM Nitish Kumar).

“My state of Tamil Nadu has been neglected in the Union Budget. Though it is the second largest state economy contributing 8.8% to the nation’s GDP and 10% to the county’s total exports,” Vaiko said.