Assam Oppn terms Union Budget 'complacent, pro-corporate'

Opposition parties in Assam, where assembly elections are likely in March-April, on Sunday termed the Union Budget for the next fiscal as complacent and aimed at protecting only the interests of the big corporates. Assam Jatiya Parishad President Lurinjyoti Gogoi alleged that the Union Budget presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has once again exposed the indifference of the Centre towards Assam and the Northeast.

Opposition parties in Assam, where assembly elections are likely in March-April, on Sunday termed the Union Budget for the next fiscal as ''complacent'' and aimed at protecting only the interests of the big corporates. Leaders from different opposition parties said there is nothing concrete for Assam despite the state going for elections within a few months, accusing the Centre of having an ''indifferent attitude'' towards the Northeast. ''The Union Budget 2026-27 reflects complacency at a time when the country needs vision, purpose, clarity and urgency. It was a template budget and offered no real roadmap even as shifting global conditions demand foresight and preparedness,'' Assam Congress president Gaurav Gogoi said. Had it been an election year for Lok Sabha, the BJP would have tried to present a bold, aggressive budget and long-term reforms, he added. ''Instead, this reads like the budget of a government content to sit back and coast through the next three years in power. There is little ambition for structural transformation, but ample comfort for select corporate friends and entrenched big business interests,'' Gogoi said. While countries such as the US, UK, China and Japan are acting decisively to strengthen their domestic economies through long-term reforms, India has been offered hesitation, drift and a worrying lack of purpose, the Deputy Leader of the Congress in Lok Sabha said. Assam Jatiya Parishad President Lurinjyoti Gogoi alleged that the Union Budget presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has once again exposed the indifference of the Centre towards Assam and the Northeast. ''While the government has been claiming record infrastructure spending and output growth, there is no outline of how Assam will actually benefit from the budget announcements,'' he added. Lurinjyoti Gogoi said the rising prices of essential commodities, unemployment among youths and the economic burden on the middle-class are completely ignored in the Budget. ''There are no meaningful tax breaks, no concrete employment guarantees, and no special economic packages for marginal or flood-prone areas like Assam. The economic structure of Assam has been destroyed due to massive borrowing without transparent state-wide financial allocation,'' he added. The AJP chief claimed that the future of the new generation of Assam is becoming increasingly uncertain. ''Floods devastate Assam every year, farmers suffer, tea plantation workers remain neglected and small-scale industries collapse -- but this budget has no answer. Farmers in Assam are frustrated with not getting proper market prices,'' he added. Lurinjyoti Gogoi further alleged that the Centre has not paid any attention to the agricultural sector. ''Instead, the Centre prefers selected areas and projects where corporate interests are protected. This is not a budget to achieve social justice for the people, but a budget prepared for the benefit of corporates,'' he added. ''For Assam, this budget clearly reflects the discrimination, neglect and lack of full accountability of the Centre,'' he added. CPI(M) Assam state secretary Suprakash Talukdar alleged that the Union Budget is an ''assault'' on the federal structure of the country. ''This budget is meant only to benefit the corporate sector, and nothing else. In the name of controlling expenditure, the benefits to the poor have been slashed,'' he added. Raijor Dal general secretary Rasel Hussain accused the BJP government of neglecting Assam and the Northeast in the Union Budget, as it did not announce ''anything specific'' for the region. ''This budget is clearly meant to promote the corporates of the country, not the common man,'' he added. All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) organisational general secretary and MLA Aminul Islam said there are only two things for Northeast in the budget -- slight rise in DoNER funds and creation of a Buddhist circuit. ''The budget is very frustrating for Assam and Northeast. There is nothing for MGNREGA, education and health sectors. We thought there would be something big as Assam is going for polls,'' he added. Terming it as a ''routine budget'', Islam said GST slabs and tax analysis are also not encouraging for the common people. In her speech, Sitharaman announced that the target for capex will be raised to Rs 12.2 lakh crore for FY'27 from the Rs 11.2 lakh crore in the current fiscal. She announced a slew of measures to boost infrastructure in the country, including in tier-2 and tier-3 cities.

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