Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday presented this year’s Union Budget amid the third wave of COVID-19. India is likely to step up spending on infrastructure, health services and social programmes in the Budget to try to set the economy on a firmer footing. 

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This was Nirmala Sitharaman’s fourth straight budget and the second paperless in view of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The Union Cabinet approved the Budget at a meeting attended by the Finance Minister, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah and others.

Announcing the Budget, the Finance Minister did not announce any change in the income tax slabs for 2022-23, while the income tax rates were also not revised.

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Terming it a ‘zero sum budget’, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi tweeted, “M0di G0vernment’s Zer0 Sum Budget! Nothing for salaried class, middle class, the poor & deprived, youth, farmers, MSMEs.”

Reacting to the budget, Congress’ Randeep Singh Surjewala also said, “India’s salaried class and middle class were hoping for relief in times of pandemic, all round pay cuts and back breaking inflation. The Finance Minister and Prime Minister have again deeply disappointed them in Direct Tax measures. This is a betrayal of India’s salaried class and middle class.”

Kerala Congress MP Shashi Tharoor too took a jibe at Nirmala Sitharaman and said that the Congress is more concerned about lack of substance for common citizens in Budget.

Speaking to ANI, a news agency, Tharoor said, “Very clear that as far as digital currency is concerned, Govt was heading in that direction. To the best of my knowledge, a reasonable proposition, I don’t think we’ll be criticising that. But we’re more concerned about lack of substance for common citizens in Budget.”

West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC chief Mamata Banerjee also took a swipe at the budget and said, “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.”(sic)

On Monday, the finance minister announced that any income from transfer of any digital asset will be taxed at 30 percent. “No deduction in respect of any expenditure or allowance shall be allowed while computing such income, except cost of acquisition,” she added. 

“Today’s budget speech was the most capitalist speech to be ever read by an FM. The word ‘poor’ occurs only twice in para 6 and we thank FM for remembering that there are poor people in this country; people will reject this capitalist budget,” says Former Finance Minister and Congress leader P Chidambaram.