Naidu govt’s maiden Budget hanging fire, YSRCP raises heat over ‘Super Six’ roadmap

Article 206 of the Constitution allows state governments to present a vote on account to allow it to use finances from the consolidated fund of the state to ensure the government’s smooth functioning. A vote on account is usually presented ahead of the Assembly elections as a temporary measure to fund the state’s expenditure until the formation of a new government and its presentation of a regular Budget.

While the Opposition YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) has alleged that the Naidu government has not yet tabled the Budget for 2024-25 to “run away” from their poll pledges, the TDP has insisted that the “financial irregularities” of the previous regime have resulted in its delay.

“It is in the TDP’s nature to run away from promises. They have done it in the past and are resorting to the same tactics now. They have no intention of fulfilling the Super Six promises and hence are finding ways to divert people’s attention. If you notice the pattern, they rake up unnecessary issues every 10-15 days to divert from real issues like health, education, etc,” YSRCP MP from Tirupati Maddila Gurumoorthy charged while speaking to The Indian Express.

Another YSRCP leader from Vijayawada echoed Gurumoorthy’s allegation, claiming that Naidu was “aware beforehand” that he would not be able to fulfil the promises he made for the polls. “The promises were unrealistic. It was impossible to keep them keeping the state’s finances in mind. In reality, he did not expect to win, hence he made such promises. Now that Naidu is in power, he has no clue how to implement them,” she said.

Dismissing such accusations, TDP national spokesperson K Pattabhi Ram said the previous Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy-led YSRCP regime’s “financial irregularities” caused the delay in presenting the Budget in the Assembly. “The previous government had resorted to all sorts of irregularities and taken loans using various corporations. They left us a state with a debt of Rs 10 lakh crore. We need to sort that out first,” Pattabhi Ram told The Indian Express.

He also said the Naidu government has a sense of clarity now after grants were announced for Amaravati as well as seven backward districts of the state in the Union Budget. “We can make better allocations now in our Budget, which will be out soon,” he said.

TDP MLA from Tatikonda, Tenali Sravan Kumar claimed the Budget would be tabled in the upcoming session of the Assembly in October. “We have already started implementing the Super Six. The enhanced pensions have already reached people. The free gas cylinder scheme will be launched during Diwali. We are committed to fulfil our promises and are just cleaning the financial mess of the previous government before tabling the Budget,” he said.

A senior government official, on condition of anonymity, admitted that it was unusual for a government not to table the Budget after coming to power. “A Budget, especially the one tabled immediately after coming to power, ensures that the government has laid out its financial roadmap and is assuring to the people that the government’s promises will be kept,” the official said but pointed out that the government was implementing its promises through the vote on account.

In July, the Naidu-led government had also tabled a White Paper in the Assembly, in which it stated that the Jagan government left the state in a debt amounting to Rs 10 lakh crore.

In June, the NDA stormed to power in the simultaneous Lok Sabha and Assembly elections in the state, winning 164 of the 175 Assembly seats. The Assembly elections were also held in neighbouring Odisha. Both Naidu and his Odisha counterpart Mohan Charan Manjhi took oath on June 12, with the Manjhi government tabling its first Budget on June 25.

In the run-up to the Assembly elections, the TDP had promised a slew of welfare schemes under the “Super Six” guarantees which included free travel for women on RTC buses, three free LPG cylinders per year, financial assistance of Rs 15,000 for mothers of school going children, under the “Thalliki Vandanam” scheme, monthly allowance of Rs 3,000 for unemployed youth, ₹1,500 per month for every woman aged 18 and above, and annual assistance of ₹20,000 to each farmer under the “Annadata Sukhibhava”.