Union Budget 2022-23: 'Pegasus spin' budget has 'zero' for common people, says West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee

Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday claimed that the Union Budget 2022-23 is a "Pegasus spin budget".

“BUDGET HAS ZERO FOR COMMON PEOPLE, WHO ARE GETTING CRUSHED BY UNEMPLOYMENT & INFLATION. GOVT IS LOST IN BIG WORDS SIGNIFYING NOTHING - A PEGASUS SPIN BUDGET,” tweeted Mamata.

Principal Chief Advisor to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and the finance department, Amit Mitra, claimed that the new budget is supply-driven rather than demand-driven.

“There was a huge opportunity for the BJP -ed Central government to change their last budget’s mistake and make the budget more demand-driven which is good for the economy. Mamata Banerjee has shown how to make a demand-driven budget. UK, US, Germany, France are also making demand-driven budgets,” said Mitra.

Mitra also claimed that there is no direction of financial growth in this union budget.

“There is nothing for the poor and middle class. The income tax structure remains unchanged. The Centre’s budget is either a hoax or a lack of goodwill. There is no allocation for social security schemes. Nothing for senior citizens either. The biggest thing is that there is no solution for middle-class employees in the budget. 1.20 crore middle-class people lost their jobs in lockdown. What is allocated for them in the budget?,” further claimed the former state finance minister.

Mitra also claimed that the budget does not address the menace of 30 million unemployed or inflation of 14 per cent wholesale prices or 6 per cent increase in consumer prices.

“These are crushing. It does not stimulate demand by putting money in the hands of the common people - something that all other countries are doing. What is allocated in the budget for the families of those who lost their lives due to COVID? There is nothing,” alleged Mitra.

Slamming the Central government, senior CPI (M) leader and politburo member Sujan Chakraborty also claimed that the budget is against the middle-class family.

“The Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman claimed that the budget is in favour of the farmers but the Minimum Support Price (MSP) is lower in comparison to the last budget. The BJP government also took pride in selling the properties of the country,” mentioned Chakraborty.

Published on: Tuesday, February 01, 2022, 08:27 PM IST