‘No one can see it, it’s just on paper': DK Shivakumar on Karnataka budget

Calling the Karnataka budget for 2023-24 “short-sighted”, KPCC chief DK Shivakumar on Friday hit out at CM Bommai, claiming that no one can see or feel the budget and that the CM should keep a copy of it in his showcase.

Karnataka chief minister Basavaraj Bommai on Friday presented his second budget, in which he announced allocations to women welfare, farmer welfare, government schemes and infrastructure projects, with focus on Bengaluru roads and traffic, climate change, data security and more.

Karnataka Congress leader DK Shivakumar and several other leaders of the grand old party hit out at CM Bommai on Friday after his budget presentation, calling it "short-sighted". (PTI)

Meanwhile, opposition leaders in the poll-bound state mounted an attack against the ruling party by donning flowers on their ears, meant to symbolise how the BJP was "fooling people". Their campaign was called ‘kivi mele hoova’, meaning flower on the ear.

READ | Karnataka Budget 2023 Live: Bommai finishes more than 2.5-hr-long speech

This all comes in the backdrop of an assembly election in the southern state in April - May this year.

No sooner had Bommai finished his two-and-a-half hour long budget speech than the Congress workers held a protest against it. Workers from the grand old party also protested against state minister's Dr CN Ashwath Narayan's “finish off Siddaramaiah” remark.

KPCC chief DK Shivakumar also said, “Today, we are responding symbolically against the BJP by putting flowers on our ears in opposition to the budget which fools the Kannadigas. This budget is like a sunny horse. No one can see it, no one can feel it. Bommai can keep a copy at his home to claim that he has presented a budget.”

“Why has the BJP government, which had advertised in a big way that they will give ₹2000 per woman, reduced it to ₹500? Job creation, empowerment of farmers, relief against inflation, efforts to save workers and employers have definitely not been made. It is a short-sighted budget,” he added.

Karnataka Congress and several other leaders also took to social media to oppose the budget.