Union Finance Minister Piyush Goyal on Friday presented his maiden Budget in the Lok Sabha. In the "Interim Budget", he outlined the government's proposed vision for 2030, provided sops for middle-class tax payers and announced an annual dole for small farmers.
Here are the reactions for the Interim Budget.
Commerce Minister Suresh Prabhu
"Indeed a budget for the people, of the people! Focusing on the 3 main components of our glorious nation - people, progress & prosperity. This budget will move us towards #NewIndia by 2022. We shall celebrate 75 yrs of our Independence with our heads held high!" Minister of Commerce and Industry, Civil Aviation, Suresh Prabhu tweeted.
Union Minister Arun Jaitley
"Interim Budgets are also an opportunity for the Government of the day to introspect their performance of the last five years and place its facts before the people. The Budget is unquestionably Pro-Growth, Fiscally prudent, Pro-Farmer, Pro-Poor and strengthens the purchasing power of the Indian Middle Class." Union Minister Arun Jaitley, who presented the previous four budgets, said.
TDP MP Y.S. Chowdhury
"It is not a budget. It is government's attempt to apply band aid over the wounds it inflicted in last five years," said TDP MP Y.S. Chowdhury.
He also noted that the Budget should have been limited to vote on accounts and not announce policy decisions, "It is a violation of rules."
Former Finance Minister Chidambaram
"It was not a vote on account. It was an account for votes." This was former Finance Minister P. Chidambaram's reaction to the Budget.
In a series of tweets Mr. Chidambaram said: "Thank you Interim FM for copying the Congress' declaration that the poor have the first right to the resources of the country,"he added in response to the government's announcement assuring minimum income support for farmers."
"As I had warned, Government misses Fiscal Deficit target for 2018-19. Another red flag rises: CAD is 2.5 percent," he wrote on Twitter.
Politician and activist Yogendra Yadav
Former AAP MLA Yogendra Yadav slammed the Budget 2019, terming it as an attempt to rub salt in the wounds of farmers.
"The 'historic' 6,000 rupees a year for a family of 5 translates to ₹3.3 a day. This is even lower than MNREGA or old-age pension!," he wrote on Twitter.
"The ₹6,000 a year for farmers' announcement basically means that in the next 3 months, ₹20,000 crore will be spent by the govt in buying farmer votes for the BJP," Mr. Yadav wrote. "But people know these schemes are merely to buy votes. These last minute tricks don't work!," he added.