Union Budget 2024 | A look at top reactions after Sitharaman's speech in Lok Sabha

A look at some of the top reactions to the Union Budget 2024-25.

The Opposition on Tuesday termed the Union Budget presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman as a 'kursi bachao budget' driven by political compulsions and claimed that it ignored opposition-ruled states in a bid to appease BJP's allies, mainly the TDP and JD(U).

Industry players, however said that the budget will promote inclusive growth and provide resilience in the economy, industry players said.

Chidambaram was one of the first ones to call the Budget a copy of the Congress manifesto, followed by Rahul Gandhi. Gandhi's remark was endorsed by several Congress and other Opposition party leaders including Jairam Ramesh, Mamata Banerjee, Mallikarjun Kharge among many others who called it a 'copy and paste' of the grand old party's manifesto.

Follow DH as we track latest reactions to the Union Budget here

P Chidambaram

Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram.

Unemployment is the biggest challenge the country faces and the response of the government is too little and will have only little impact on the grave situation. I am glad to know that the Hon'ble FM has read the Congress Manifesto LS 2024 after the election results I am happy she has virtually adopted the Employment-linked incentive (ELI) outlined on page 30 of the Congress Manifesto.

Rahul Gandhi

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi dubbed the Union Budget a "kursi bachao budget" and claimed it makes "hollow promises" to BJP allies at the cost of other states.

Aaditya Thackeray, Shiv Sena (UBT)

Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray.

Shiv Sena(Uddhav) leader Aaditya Thackeray lashed out at the BJP for 'not mentioning Maharashtra' even once. "Why does the bjp hate and insult Maharashtra so much," Thackeray shared on X.

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, however reacted to the Opposition leaders' charges and accused them of trying to build a "negative narrative" even though "substantial allocations" are earmarked in the Union Budget for the state.

KB Kachru, Hotel Association of India (HAI) President

The Hotel Association of India (HAI) President KB Kachru said the tourism and hospitality sector plays a crucial role in the growth of the Indian economy. The continued focus on government spending on infrastructure development augurs well for the sector.

"Regrettably, however, there has been no policy announcement to facilitate the development of hotels and promotion of inbound tourism.

Mallikarjun Kharge

Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge termed the budget "copycat" and alleged that it is not for the progress of the country but to "save the Modi government".

Nitish Kumar

Patna: Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. 

Content with the allocation for Bihar, CM Nitish Kumar said the 'special help' announced in the Union Budget addressed the state's concerns, which had previously led to demands for special category status. Kumar, a key ally of the ruling NDA, said, "We had proposed that if special status wasn't feasible for technical reasons, Bihar should receive special assistance (vishesh madat) from the Centre in another form, which has been announced today."

George Alexander Muthoot, MD, Muthoot Finance

"The Union Budget 2024 focuses on the comprehensive development of the economy by adhering to fiscal prudence, boosting infrastructure growth, and through continued emphasis on four major pillars of society - the poor, women, youth and the farmers. The massive impetus on capex expenditure outlay of Rs 11.11 lakh crore is a testimony to the government's focus on boosting investment activity and further strengthening fiscal health of the economy," he said.

YSR Congress

Jaganmohan Reddy.

YSRCP took to its social media to say that the central government has given "zero" to Andhra Pradesh in the Union Budget. In its official X account, the party said the Rs 15,000 crore funds for the capital Amaravati is nothing but a surety to be given by the Centre to get a loan.

(With PTI inputs)

Mamata Banerjee

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

Trinamool Congress collectively also slammed the budget by calling it a 'Andhra-Bihar Budget' and said it reflected the fiscal and political bankruptcy of the regime. Party supremo and Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee called the Budget 'directionless, anti-people, no vision and said it only has political mission written all over it.

Piyush Goyal

Piyush Goyal

BJP leader Piyush Goyal reiterated the saffron party slogan of 'Modi Hai To Mumkin Hai' and said that this what PM Modi has consistently proved in the past years.

Emami Group director Aditya V Agarwal

"The budget is holistic, offering a level-playing ground for many strata of society. Both direct tax relaxation under the new regime and the reform initiatives are directed towards sustainable growth and empowerment."

Pradeep Shetty, Federation of Hotel and Restaurant Associations of India (FHRAI)

"The hospitality sector has been pinning high hopes on the Union Budget for 2024-25 on the backdrop of the government of India's stated vision of Viksit Bharat by 2047 and the critical role the tourism industry holds in achieving it. However, there is nothing spectacular in the budget to bring structural changes to address the fundamental challenges it faces in a competitive world order and to accelerate the growth of the sector to be a $3 trillion economy by 2047."

Rajeev Dimri, Head of Tax practice, KPMG

"The Budget has focused on many important areas. The ones I saw very important was employment generation, skilling and manufacturing. Because once that gets done, whole lot of consequential impact happens in the economy."

Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, chairperson, Biocon & Biocon Biologics

"The Union Budget for FY25 builds further on the government’s pre-election, Interim Budget and has positive indicators on how the government is looking at India’s economic growth and development. The FM’s emphasis on job creation through skilling is a key underlying theme. Internships at large companies with Government and CSR backed stipends is the right approach to employability and jobs for the future. The budget has also focused on the start up ecosystem and provided a fillip through the abolition of the ‘angel tax’ which is aimed  at spurring investments in start-ups, and the emphasis on ‘ease of doing business’ will benefit MSMEs."

Union Budget 2024 LIVE | Making a record for any Finance Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman presented her 7th consecutive Union Budget on July 23, 2024 under the Modi 3.0 government. This Budget brought tax relief for the middle class, while focusing on jobs through skilling, incentivising employers. Track the latest coverage, live news, in-depth opinions, and analysis only on Deccan Herald. Also follow us on WhatsApp, LinkedIn, X, Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram.