FM hit-wicket for 0; Budget's theme is 'Sell India': Congress & TMC trash Budget 2021

The Congress party on Monday strongly lambasted the Union Budget 2020-2021, saying Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's speech was oblivious to the declining GDP and the budget was a case of "wrong diagnosis and prescription".

"The FM could have been brave but chose to be timid. The nation needed a bold budget and more direct transfers to the weaker sections to revive demand, restart job creation," senior Congress leader and Deputy Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Anand Sharma tweeted. The budget is "disappointing" and without a roadmap for accelerating growth and revival of consumer demand, he said.

'We will not grow economy but sell the family silver' 

Congress spokesperson and Anandpur Sahib MP Manish Tewari also alleged that the budget was a "national monetisation plan -- shorthand for National Sell out" and there was "no central focus in Budget". Rahul Gandhi concurred.

"FM's Talkthorn (sic) oblivious that growth rate of  GDP  is in a record 37th-month decline.Worst Crisis since 1991. Except for a National Monetisation Plan - shorthand for National Sell out no Central Focus in Budget. Bottom line-Will not grow economy but sell the family silver," he tweeted.

Another Congress spokesperson Jaiveer Shergill said the budget has left the middle class "bruised and wounded" by not changing tax slabs, not increasing deductions, not making new deduction slots like home loans, not bringing fuel under GST, not sharing Rs 19 Lakh crore gain from fuel taxes, not reducing GST rates. 

'100% visionless budget': TMC

Meanwhile, the TMC lashed out at the Centre over the Union Budget on Monday, saying it was 100% "visionless" and its theme was "sell India."

"India's first paperless budget is also a 100% visionless budget. Theme of the fake budget is Sell India!" TMC spokesperson Derek O'Brien said. "Railways: sold, Airports: sold, Ports: sold, Insurance: sold PSUs: 23 sold!" O'Brien claimed common people and farmers were ignored, adding that the Budget would make the rich richer and the poor poorer, while the middle class got "nothing".

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The Rajya Sabha MP also highlighted statistics to show how West Bengal had developed rural roads. "Rural roads: 39,705 km rural roads till 2011. 88,841 km rural roads developed between 2011-20," he said, adding that the state was No. 1 in rural roads. "What Bengal did yesterday, Centre only talks today: Budget 2021 promise  625 km roads in Bengal. Bengal government (2018-19) New roads of 5111 km, top performer in the country. additional 1165 km constructed in 2019-20," he said.

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(With PTI inputs)