West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has called the Union Budget presented by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman “politically biased”, “directionless” and “an attempt to make the BJP’s NDA partners happy”. She also alleged that the budget was another example of how the Centre “constantly deprives West Bengal”. “The budget is anti-people and anti-poor. Inflation is rising. There is no talk of employment for the next generation. I see no light in the budget. Only darkness,” she said.
The Trinamool Congress supremo slammed the NDA-led Central Government over the issue of special financial packages such as flood relief and reconstruction to States like Bihar and Andhra Pradesh while “depriving” Trinamool-ruled West Bengal. This, she claimed, was the latest in a series of systemic deprivations for her State.
“I have no problem that the Centre has given financial packages to Andhra and Bihar. But the law cannot be discriminatory. They have constantly deprived West Bengal. West Bengal is not a small State,” Banerjee said while reacting to the Budget proposals.
“Our State has faced cyclones like Amphan. They have given flood relief and reconstruction packages to neighbouring states but not to Bengal. We are supposed to get Rs 1,71,000 crore as dues from the Centre. They have not given us a paisa. There is no talk of the dues of 100 days of work. The people of West Bengal will rise up against this deprivation. We are not weak,” she asserted.
Addressing the financial grant given to Sikkim which recently saw landslides and natural calamities, the Chief Minister said: “I am happy that Sikkim was provided financial assistance but the hills of Darjeeling and Kalimpong also faced similar crises.
They seek votes from Darjeeling, but after votes, they forget Darjeeling.”
On cue, other Trinamool Congress leaders came out to criticise the Union Budget and the Central Government on similar lines.
“This BUDGET is a complete failure with ZERO WARRANTY, presented by a FAILED FINANCE MINISTER OF A FAILED GOVERNMENT. Instead of tackling urgent issues like unemployment, rising prices and growing inflation, the BJP has crafted a budget to bribe its coalition partners and buy time before the government IMPLODES!” posted MP and general secretary Abhishek Banerjee on X.
Abhishek Banerjee also said: “You have seen how West Bengal has been constantly deprived by this BJP-led Government. Has there been a positive outcome out of the 12 BJP MPs who were elected from this State? No! The net result is zero because West Bengal has been constantly tortured and deprived.”
He added: “What Suvendu Adhikari (BJP MLA and Leader of the Opposition in the West Bengal assembly) said a few days ago – “Jo humare saath, hum unke saath” (Those who are with us, we are with them) – has been proved today. Just to save their coalition, they have allocated special packages to Bihar and Andhra Pradesh. We don’t have any problem with any State getting any allocation but why should West Bengal be deprived?”
State secretary of the party, Kunal Ghosh, stated on X, “This is not a Union Budget. This is an attempt at appeasing Bihar and Andhra Pradesh for the sake of saving one’s chair.”
Trinamool Congress’s Rajya Sabha MP Sagarika Ghose said the party’s MPs staged a walkout from the Upper House of Parliament in protest even though the Finance Minister in the Budget also referred to West Bengal while stressing on a plan, Purvodaya, “for the all-round development of the eastern region of the country covering Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh”.
