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New Delhi, Feb. 1 (PTI): Leaders of the BJP-led ruling alliance lavished praise on the Union Budget with Prime Minister Narendra Modi saying it benefits every section of society and will boost growth but the Opposition scorned its populist push, calling it the saffron party's poll manifesto and election 'jumla'.
With some Union ministers hailing the budget as a "surgical strike" on the Opposition, Congress chief Rahul Gandhi mocked their show of euphoria, saying surgical strike will happen on Modi and his government on issues like the Rafale deal, jobs and demonetisation during the general election.
Former finance minister P Chidambram mocked the budget as an account for votes and not a vote on account as it should have been.
The NDA leaders expressed hope that the budget's sops for the middle class, farmers and small industries will boost their electoral prospects and their optimism was visible in their praise for these.
BJP chief Amit Shah said the interim budget "benefits" all sections of the society and asserted that it has underscored the Modi government's dedication to the aspirations of the country's youth, farmers and the poor.
He highlighted the increase in income tax exemption to INR 5 lakh, a move aimed at wooing the salaried middle class, and annual payout of INR 6,000 to farmers to drive home his point.
Modi said over 12 crore farmers, three crore middle class families and 30-40 crore workers employed in unorganised sector will benefit from the budget which, he asserted, is merely a "trailer" of what will guide India towards prosperity after the elections, expected in April-May.
This budget will boost the efforts of 130 crore citizens in realising the goal of a new India, he said.
Slamming the government for "trampling" on time-honoured conventions by presenting a "full-fledged budget" and not an interim one, former finance minister and Congress leader P Chidambaram accused it of violating the Constitution.
"My one line comment on the budget is that it was not a Vote on Account but an account for votes. It was a full-fledged budget accompanied by an election campaign speech," he told reporters.
The government has said that it was an interim budget.
In his reaction, Gandhi also accused the government of destroying the lives of farmers over the past fiver years, and said the budget's announcement of "Rs 17 a day" for them was an insult to everything they stand and work for.
CPI-M leader Mohammad Salim called the announcements an election "jumla" (rhetoric), a sentiment echoed by former BJP ally and RLSP chief Upendra Kushwaha, now in the Congress-led alliance, who added that the interim budget will be the "antim" (last) budget of this government.
"The budget is anti-youth and misleading for all sections of society, including farmers. This is nothing by an election jumla," Kushwaha said.
The budget's proposals have assumed significance as they come weeks ahead of the announcement of the Lok Sabha poll schedule.
BJP ally and Lok Janshakti Party chief Ram Vilas Paswan hailed the budget as "second surgical strike", saying the first- a reference to the Army's attack on terror launch pads across the border- used bullets against the country's external enemies while this will use ballots to decimate the ruling NDA's rivals in the general election.
He claimed that Modi will come back to power with the NDA winning more than 400 seats in the coming polls.
RSS affiliates also praised the budget, terming it pro-people and a step towards ensuring universal basic income.
"Finance Minister Piyush Goyal has enumerated many pro-workers measures already in place. Even though this is an interim budget, let the pro-worker vision form a part of the future road map for development," Bhartiya Mazdoor Sangh president Saji Narayanan said in a statement.
Echoing similar sentiments, Sangh-affiliated Swadeshi Jagran Manch co-convener Ashwani Mahajan said this budget has something for everyone, be it farmers, middle class or workers. "It is actually a pro-people budget," he said.
Home Minister Rajnath Singh described the budget as "historic" and said it will accelerate the process of creating a 'new India' which is confident, self-reliant, developed and prosperous.
Union minister Arun Jaitley, who had been holding the finance portfolio but had to relinquish the office for health reasons, said the government's decision to exempt income of up to Rs 5 lakh from tax will benefit the "great Indian middle class".
The significant announcement made by Goyal will strengthen the purchasing power of the middle class which holds the key for India's future, he said. He is currently in the US for treatment.
The ruling TRS in Telangana claimed the cash dole for farmers was an "imitation" of a scheme launched by it but added that politics had taken precedence over economics in the budget.
BSP president Mayawati called the budget 'jumlebazi' that did not address the ground realties.
Samajwadi Party national president Akhilesh Yadav said in a budget of one year, the BJP has given lies of "next 10 years".
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, a key opposition leader, said Friday the interim budget for 2019-20 had absolutely no value as the term of the NDA government would end soon.
"Who will implement this?" the Trinamool Congress president asked.
AAP national convener and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said the budget will prove to be "final jumla" of the government.
Union Finance Minister Piyush Goyal on Friday announced INR 61,398 crore budgetary allocations for the health sector for the 2019-2020 fiscal, with INR 6,400 crore earmarked for the centre's ambitious AB-PMJAY health insurance scheme.
The health outlay for the upcoming financial year is the highest in the last two financial years and a 16% increase over the 2018-2019 allocation which was INR 54,302.50 crore.
The Union Budget for 2019-20 saw an allocation of INR 6,400 crore for the Centre's Ayushman Bharat-Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY) which was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in September 23.
The scheme aims at providing a cover of INR 5 lakh per family annually and is aimed at benefitting more than 10 crore poor families across the country.
INR 250 crore has been allocated for setting up Ayushman Bharat Health and Wellness Centres under the National Urban Health Mission to provide comprehensive and quality primary care close to the community. INR 1350.01 crore has been earmarked for setting up Health and Wellness Centres under the National Rural Health Mission.
INR 60,000 crore for rural employment scheme under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) for the year 2019-20.
The amount allocated for 2019-20 is 11 per cent higher compared to INR 55,000 crore allocated for the year 2018-19.
The revised estimate of the scheme for the year 2018-19 was INR 61,084.09 crore, according to official data.
INR 93,847.64 crore for the education sector for 2019-20, an increase of over 10 per cent from last budget allocation.
While INR 37,461.01 crore has been allocated for higher education, an amount of INR 56,386.63 crore has been earmarked for school education.
Last year, then finance minister Arun Jaitley had allocated INR 85,010 crore for the education sector.