The Congress on Thursday warned of protests inside and outside Parliament if the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government present a full budget instead of a vote on account on February 1.
Addressing a press conference, former Union Minister Manish Tewari said it would be a “blatant violation of Constitutional propriety,” if the government presented a Budget for 365 days, when its mandate is now only for 56 days from April 1, the beginning of the financial year 2019-2020.
“If the NDA-BJP (National Democratic Alliance-Bharatiya Janata Party) government presents a full Budget, then it will be a flagrant violation of Parliamentary conventions and norms followed over seven decades. The Modi government has neither the electoral mandate nor electoral legitimacy to present its sixth full Budget in 5 years,” Mr. Tewari told reporters.
He said the move will be against established Parliamentary norms and practices. “From where does the government derive the locus to present budget for 365 days? Seeking to hide the economic mismanagement in the last 5 years, it is resorting to complete violation of Constitutional propriety and parliamentary procedures and norms,” alleged Mr. Tewari.
Deputy leader of the Congress in the Rajya Sabha Anand Sharma termed the move as a “desperate attempt” to make a “grandiose announcement and hoodwink people.”
"The BJP government’s move to present a regular Budget few months before the elections is against all norms, rules and established Parliamentary practices. The term of the government is five years, which ends in May 2019. The government presented five full budgets and can only present a vote on account,” he said on Twitter.
“For a Budget for 12 months, the government must have the tenure left. A tenure of three months and a budget for on year is bizarre and unprecedented. Not to forget that the budget is followed by the Finance Bill that must be adopted in 75 days,” asserted Mr. Sharma.
“The intent is questionable. After having made false promises and failed to deliver, this is a desperate attempt to make grandiose announcements and hoodwink the people in utter disregard of Constitution and Parliamentary practices,” he added.