Punjab Budget visionless, has no provision for pre-poll promises, says Opposition

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, June 27

The Opposition today dismissed the Budget, saying it was visionless and “a bunch of lies and betrayal with people of Punjab.

Targets govt over free power

• Referring to the announcement of 300 units of free power, the BJP said: “Where is the budgetary provision for the subsidy?”
• It said while there was provision of Rs 6,649 cr in the Budget for free power to the agriculture sector, there was no such provision for 300 free units to other consumers

Pradesh Congress Committee president Amrinder Singh Raja Warring said: “The Budget is not just a financial statement, but also a means to set the course for future progress and was the best chance for the government to show what ‘badlav’ (change) it envisioned for the state and it has miserably failed on that.”

“Not a single promise that the Aam Aadmi Party made before elections has been fulfilled in the Budget”, he observed, while pointing out, there was not even a mention of pre-poll promise of providing Rs 1,000 per month to all women above 18, who are now feeling cheated.

Similarly, he added there was no clarity about the “300 units of free power”. Other than the token announcement, the Finance Minister did not elaborate as to from where will the government get money as there is no budgetary allocation made for the scheme.

Warring pointed out the budget in no way spelled out how the state will cover the massive revenue gap. “Now they must have realized that the government does not run on rhetoric,” he said

Meanwhile, the BJP said the Budget was directionless and lacked any vision. “It is not just paperless, but directionless also.”

State BJP general secretary Subash Sharma said: “It is a fraud with over one crore women of Punjab who were promised Rs 1,000 per month by the AAP before elections and now the budget does not even refer to it,” he said. Referring to the announcement of 300 units of free power by the Finance Minister, Dr Sharma asked, where is the budgetary provision for the subsidy.

About The Author

Tribune News Service

The Tribune News Service brings you the latest news, analysis and insights from the region, India and around the world. Follow the Tribune News Service for a wide-ranging coverage of events as they unfold, with perspective and clarity.