Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge sharply criticized the NDA government on Tuesday, calling the recently presented Budget a “copycat budget” and accusing the BJP of failing to properly replicate the Congress party’s Nyay Patra justice guarantee.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Kharge, who also serves as the Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, stated, “Modi government’s ‘copycat budget’ could not even copy Congress’ justice guarantee properly.”
Kharge derided the government for what he described as half-hearted “rewadis” (rewards) intended to deceive coalition partners and ensure the NDA’s survival. “This is not a budget for the ‘progress of the country’; it is a ‘save Modi government’ budget,” he said.
He pointed out that after a decade in power, the government has made only limited announcements for the youth, who are still waiting for the promised two crore jobs per year. Kharge criticized the superficial promises made to farmers, including the one-and-a-half times MSP and income doubling, calling them electoral frauds. He also accused the government of having no real plan to increase rural wages.
The Congress leader further argued that there is no groundbreaking scheme for Dalits, Adivasis, backward classes, minorities, the middle class, or the rural poor, unlike those implemented by the Congress-UPA. “The word ‘poor’ has become just a branding tool with no substantial content,” he said, adding, “There is nothing in this budget to enhance women’s economic capacity or increase their participation in the workforce.”
Kharge also claimed that the government is celebrating rising inflation while robbing people of their hard-earned money and distributing it among capitalist friends. He noted that less money has been allocated to agriculture, health, education, public welfare, and tribals than what was originally budgeted, suggesting these are not BJP priorities. “Similarly, Rs 1 lakh crore less has been spent on capital expenditure; how will jobs increase?” Kharge asked.
He further criticized the government for discussing various sectors such as urban and rural development, infrastructure, manufacturing, MSME, and EV schemes without making any significant announcements. Regarding Indian Railways, Kharge lamented that railway accidents continue, train services are disrupted, and the number of coaches has been reduced, yet the budget made no mention of these issues or provided any accountability.
Kharge also questioned the government’s handling of the census and caste census, noting that this is the fifth budget presented without addressing these matters. “This is a shocking and unprecedented failure, contrary to democracy and the Constitution,” he said.
Targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Kharge recalled Modi’s claim on May 20, 2024, that “We already have a 100-day action plan.” “If the action plan was in place two months ago, it should have been reflected in the budget. There is no plan in the budget; the BJP is merely engaged in deceiving the public,” Kharge added.
These remarks followed the presentation of the first budget of the NDA 3.0 government by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday.
