Budget 'anti-people', 'opportunistic': Mamata

BOLPUR: Terming the Union Budget ''anti-people'', West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday said it will deprive the poor.

Addressing a government function at Bolpur in Birbhum district, she claimed that the changes in the income tax slabs will not help anyone.

''This Union Budget is not futuristic, totally opportunistic, anti-people and anti-poor. It will benefit only one class of people. This Budget will not help address the country's unemployment issue. It has been prepared with an eye on the 2024 Lok Sabha elections,'' she said.

''The changes in the income tax slabs will not help anyone. There is no ray of hope in this Budget -- it is a dark budget. This Budget is full of lies, falsehoods and fake claims. Give me half an hour and I will show you how to prepare a Budget for the poor,'' she added.

Banerjee said that when her government prepares its Budget, it keeps in mind the cause of the poor.

Claiming that the Centre is facing a cash crunch, she said that attention should have been given to the GDP growth.

''The Centre's reserves have dried up. They are not giving any attention to the falling GDP,'' she said. Hitting out over searches by central agencies, she said, ''The role of the central agencies is to ensure the security of the country. I heard that raids were being conducted throughout the country. Is it because you have no money left with you now?'' Banerjee's reaction came after the presentation of the Union Budget for 2023-24 by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in which the government raised the personal income tax rebate limit, doled out sops on small savings and announced one of the biggest hikes in capital spending in the past decade.