Opposition slams: Budget for rich corporates, not common man

He said the total expenditure has been slashed by Rs 1,04,025 crore and capital expenditure has been cut by Rs 92,682 crore. “In this, the sectors that have suffered most are health Rs 1,255 crore, education Rs 11,584 crore, social welfare Rs 10,019 crore, agriculture Rs 10,992 crore, rural development Rs 75,133 crore, urban development Rs 18,907 crore, development of northeast `1,894 crore. These crucial cuts were in (schemes and programmes) for SC/ST, OBC and minorities… How do you justify this,” asked the MP.

Starting the discussion, Congress MP from Tamil Nadu’s Karur, S Jothimani, said the Budget is not merely about numbers, it also reflects the government’s “priorities, ideology and intent”. “This Finance Bill makes it clear that the government is for the rich and not for the common people and farmers. It works for corporates,” said the MP.

On the income tax relief to people earning up to Rs 12 lakh per year, she said: “The government is projecting that this will help the entire middle class. It only benefits one crore people, while the Indian middle class comprises 40-50 crore people.”

“The Modi government has gifted Rs 26 lakh crore to corporates. The income tax and GST collection is more than corporate tax collection,” she said.

On the Budget for minorities, she alleged that the allocation was reduced by `2,000 crore compared to the UPA government and that it was an “economic blockade against minorities”.

Samajwadi Party’s Lalji Verma said the BJP government’s thinking is that if the corporates are wealthy, the country will be wealthy. “If India has to be developed, the country will have to follow Mahatma Gandhi’s economic policy — to make the country egalitarian and get rid of the inequality in society. The inequality in the country is very stark. The country’s 1% population has 22.6% of the country’s income, and has 53% of the country’s assets.”