What opposition says about Budget 2019?

New Delhi, Feb 1: After Narendra Modi government presented the Interim Budget for 2019-20 on Friday, the opposition parties found many faults in it.

The Congress leaders started using #AakhriJumlaBudget on Twitter.

Congress President Rahul Gandhi alleged that the government destroyed the lives of farmers over the past five years, and it insulted them by announcing Interim Budget announcement of "Rs 17 a day" for them.

"Dear NoMo, 5 years of your incompetence and arrogance has destroyed the lives of our farmers. Giving them Rs. 17 a day is an insult to everything they stand and work for. #AakhriJumlaBudget," Rahul tweeted.

Leader of Congress in Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge termed the Budget as the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP's) "election manifesto" and accused the ruling dispensation of bribing voters ahead of the Lok Sabha Polls.

Former Finance Minister and senior Congress leader P. Chidambaram said, "Thank you Interim FM for copying the Congress' declaration that the poor have the first right to the resources of the country. It was not a Vote on Account. It was an Account for Votes.

He added: "The Interim FM tested our patience by the longest interim Budget Speech in recent memory. It was not an interim budget, it was a full-fledged budget accompanied by an election campaign speech."

Former Union Minister and senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor told ANI that "the whole exercise has turned out to be a damp squib. We've seen one good thing that is tax exemption for the middle class. Rs 6000 in income support for farmers boils down to Rs 500 per month. Is that supposed to enable them to live with the honour & dignity?

He also accused that most numbers given out by Piyush Goyal in the Budget are blatant lies.

He later tweeted: "Having promised a separate Ministry of Fisheries in their 2014 campaign, the BJP backs away from that commitment in Parliament & now announces a separate Department which will have at best one month to work before the Election Commission's Code of Conduct kicks in."

Congress spokesperson Sanjay Jha tweeted: "So #Modi tried his last trick with #AakhriJumlaBudget . Another embarrassing flop. Time to say #ByeByeModi has come."

The Communist Party of India (Marxist) General Secretary Sitaram Yechury said in a tweet, "Budget 2019-20: It is a testimony to the BJP's fear and desperation about what that verdict of the people might be that it has sought to use what is an interim budget to make promises that are not for it to make."

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee also criticized the government.

"This government has no moral authority or responsibility to place the budget for 5 years when they'll not be in power. The government will go for expiry. After expiry, if you give medicine, is there any value? What will be the value? This is absolutely valueless," she told mediapersons.

Karnataka Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy, who is running the government in the state with the support of the Congress, said, "Friends of BJP have made this budget. I want to ask if this #budget was prepared by officials of finance dept or RSS? In this budget, Modi has given cotton candy for farmers. When I announced loan waiver scheme, PM mocked it as lollipop."

Former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav, who has stitched an alliance with historically opponent Mayawati of the Bahujan Samaj Party in Uttar Pradesh for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, said all sections of the society want to get rid of the BJP.

"Talk of 10 years in a year's Budget is a false story. There is no relief for the majority of landless farmers and workers. After five years of torture and suffering; the farmers of the country, businessmen, unemployed youth want to get rid of the BJP and don't want any false announcements," he tweeted.

Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party's national convener Arvind Kejriwal also castigated the government over the Budget.

"Final jumla of Modi govt : it's interim budget too completely disappoints Delhi. Our share in central taxes remains frozen at Rs 325 crore & nothing earmarked for local bodies. Delhi continues to be on its own financially," Kejriwal tweeted.

He suggested to the government that invest heavily in education and health, increase minimum wages and enforce it, give crop prices 1.5 times of the cost, and give one time farm loan waiver.

"This would put money in pocket of poorest, create demand, give boost to economy and create jobs. None of it done in budget," Kejriwal said.

Members from opposition parties, including the Congress and the Left, alleged that proposals of the interim budget were leaked to the media even before the document was presented in the House.