Parliament Session: Opposition Walkout Over Alleged Budget Discrimination

New Delhi – The Parliament witnessed a dramatic walkout by opposition MPs on Wednesday, as members of the INDIA bloc protested against what they termed as “discrimination” in the Union Budget against states ruled by non-BJP governments. The Congress has alleged that these states were “blacked out” in the budget, with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman not mentioning them in her speech.

Allegations and Responses

The Congress party has claimed that the Union Budget failed to acknowledge the needs and contributions of states governed by opposition parties. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman countered these allegations, stating that it is impractical to name every state in a budget speech.

Record-Breaking Budget Presentation

On Tuesday, Sitharaman presented the Union Budget 2024-25 during the Monsoon Session of Parliament. This marked her seventh consecutive budget presentation, surpassing former Prime Minister Morarji Desai’s record of six consecutive budgets as finance minister between 1959 and 1964.

Key Priorities

In her speech, Sitharaman highlighted the budget’s focus on fostering economic growth, emphasizing productivity and resilience in agriculture, employment, skilling, and services. “India’s economic growth continues to be the shining exception in a world gripped by policy uncertainties and will remain so in the years ahead,” she said. “In this budget, we particularly focus on employment, skilling, MSMEs, and the middle class.”

Major Announcements

Among the notable announcements in the budget are:

• An increase in the standard deduction for salaried employees from ₹50,000 to ₹75,000 under the new income tax regime.
• Relaxation in the income tax slabs under the new tax regime for the current fiscal year.
• A provision for a one-month wage to all new employees in formal sectors, with the government directly transferring the amount to their provident fund contributions.

Regional Allocations

The budget also included significant allocations to various states:

• Andhra Pradesh received ₹15,000 crore for building its capital Amaravati and a commitment to complete the Polavaram irrigation project.
• Bihar was allocated ₹26,000 crore for road connectivity projects, new airports, and sports infrastructure, along with ₹11,500 crore for flood mitigation projects.

Budget Session Highlights

The Budget session, which began on July 22, will have 19 sittings until August 12. The government is expected to present six Bills, including one to replace the 90-year-old Aircraft Act, and seek Parliament’s approval for the budget of Jammu and Kashmir, which is under central rule.

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