A day after the Government presented Budget for the next financial year amounting Rs 80,200 crore and claimed making special provisions for rural and backward areas of the State, the Opposition came together in calling it a crap.
JMM executive president and Leader of Opposition Hemant Soren termed the Budget full of lies and false promises. “The Government is just daydreaming and went on presenting a pack of lie before the people of the State. The Budget is directionless, soulless. The Chief Minister with his team of officials is showing new dreams to the people everyday,” said Soren on Wednesday calling a press conference outside the Assembly.
The JMM leader found no merit in the programmes and policies presented for the well being of primary sectors like agriculture, job creation and poverty alleviation. “The Government should present facts before the people about how much the State would lose after the GST came into force and since the State surrendered its tax collecting powers to the Center. The Budget itself says that State’s own tax revenue would go down. Cut is also there in agriculture sector and the Government is beating drums that it has done wonders to rural areas,” said the JMM leader ridiculing the claims made by Chief Minister Raghubar Das.
He also criticised the CM for keep labeling JMM as ‘Baap-Bete ki party’ and said he chants ‘Shibu Soren-Hemant Soren’ like a person in difficult times chants ‘Ram-Ram’.
JVM’s Pradeep Yadav also held a similar press briefing separately. “The CM is looking for false applauses to suppress his failures. He often goes on criticising previous Governments whereas it is Raghubar Das who has on the most occasions- eight times- presented the Budget in the history of Jharkhand. What did he say in 2005 he said same thing now. He should also explain to the economists of the country how he managed to complete over 87 per cent schemes by spending just 52 per cent of the Budget? It should be matter of research for the country and world over,” said Yadav.
The JVM legislator also termed the ATR presented about completion of the schemes announced last year as bundle of lie and went on questioning claims that FRBM Act, mandates to keep fiscal deficit under check, had not been violated.
“The Government is spreading falsehood. FRMB limit has been exceeded two times in 2015-16 and 2016-17 and this time as well it would be cross the limit looking at the expenses of the Government and its lowered revenue collection. Borrowing has seen a rise of 13.72 per cent which is set to accumulate over Rs 1 lakh crore at the end of this financial year,” said the leader terming it the worst ever Budget in the history of the State.