BJP member Tejasvi Surya on Friday hailed the Union Budget as progressive that laid the foundation for fast-paced development as India marches ahead to the centenary year of its Independence.
Participating in the discussion on the Union Budget in the Lok Sabha, Surya said his home state Karnataka had benefited the most from budgetary allocations under nine years of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and improved road, rail and air connectivity in the state.
Surya, the Lok Sabha member from Bengaluru South, spoke largely in Kannada and focussed his speech on the allocation for Karnataka, where assembly elections are due in May.
He lashed out at the previous Congress regimes and accused the main opposition party for "ignoring" development projects in Karnataka for decades.
"In 1975, when Indira Gandhi had contested elections from Chikmagalur, she had promised to build a broad gauge railway line between Kadur and Chikmagalur. The era of Indira Gandhi went by, the era of Rajiv Gandhi went by, the era of Sonia Gandhi also went by, but Chikmagalur (Chikkamagaluru) did not get the railway line. This is how Congress did injustice to Karnataka," said Surya, who is also the president of the Bhartiya Janata Yuva Morcha.
He also thanked Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman for making the highest allocation for development of railways in Karnataka.
Surya said Bengaluru had emerged as the world's fastest growing city and will be a powerhouse of India's growth engine.
He said the prime minister has also promised the people of Bengaluru to complete the suburban railway project, which has been pending for 40 years, within the next 40 months.
Surya said Karnataka was the most progressive state in the country with the highest number of start-ups and unicorns and also was a leader in innovation.
"If you give Rs 100 to Karnataka, the state will return Rs 1,000. That is the power of Karnataka," he said.
BJP member Kirit Solanki said the Union Budget was pro-people that addressed concerns of every section of the society.
BJP member Ramesh Bidhuri hit out at the Congress for criticizing the Budget over slashing allocations to MGNREGA.
He said the Congress was turning a blind eye to the higher allocation made to PM-Awas initiative that aimed at providing a home to the homeless.
"This negative approach of the Congress has ensured reduction in the party's footprint across the country. If they continue with such an approach, the Congress will also vanish from this House," Bidhuri said.
Congress member S Thirunavukkarasar said the Budget was silent on the allocation for minorities and only focussed on taking money from the pockets of the people.
BJP member Sunita Duggal lauded the Budget and said India has emerged as a bright star in the world economy.
She also said inflation was low in India compared to developed economies such as the US, the UK, and Russia.
"We are successful in keeping inflation low due to Aatmnirbhar Bharat," she said. She also lauded the government for its response to the Russia-Ukraine war.
"We are taking oil from Russia but we have also made it clear we don't support war," she said.
Malook Nagar of the Bahujan Samaj Party, meanwhile, attacked the Congress government in Rajasthan and said they manipulated BSP MLAs in the state to switch parties.
"If they want to strengthen the Opposition, they have to come to terms with reality. We supported their government for 10 years. We had six MLAs in Rajasthan, they manipulated them into joining the Congress," he said.
