The Congress party and Janata Dal (Secular) or JD(S) made their disappointment clear with the Karnataka Budget, presented by Basavaraj Bommai on Friday, calling it “lacklustre” Budget, which is devoid of any growth-oriented schemes.
Opposition leader Siddaramaiah (HT File)
“They speak about Nava Karnataka (new Karnataka) but this is a Budget with no vision because any Budget should help build dreams. It should build the future of 6.5 crore people (population of Karnataka),” Siddaramaiah, the Congress leader of the Opposition said on Friday.
He added that the achievement of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government is to increase the state’s liabilities which has more than doubled since 2018 from around ₹2.43 lakh crore to an estimated ₹5.18 lakh crore by the end of 2022-23.
HD Kumaraswamy, former chief minister and JD(S) leader said that Bommai himself appeared to lack confidence while presenting the Budget.
“In the two hours he spoke, he appeared to be stressed and there was a lack of confidence in his voice,” Kumaraswamy said.He added that the government can no longer take shelter under Covid-19, which now has to be set aside.He added that despite the hardships, people were paying taxes and filling up the state coffers but got nothing in return.