Rajya Sabha LoP Mallikarjun Kharge’s ‘Mataji’, ‘Pakoda-Jalebi’ Dig at FM Nirmala Sitharaman As He Raises Alleged Discrimination Against States in Union Budget 2024

New Delhi, July 23: Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge on Wednesday said Bihar and Andhra Pradesh got "pakoda and jalebi" on their plates while other states got nothing as he raised the issue of alleged discrimination meted out to opposition-ruled states in the Union Budget. Engaging in raillery and hurling barbs at Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in the House, the Congress veteran called Sitharaman "mataji" and said she is an expert in speaking, prompting Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar to quip that she was more like his daughter.

After chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar rejected notices under Rule 267 that called for the suspension of the listed agenda to take the alleged discrimination meted out to states in the Budget, Kharge said Bihar and Andhra Pradesh got "pakoda and jalebi" on their plates while others states got nothing. As he made his forceful assertion of states being discriminated against, Dhankhar called Sitharaman to speak and clarify on the issue. But Kharge was in no mood of relenting and continued to speak. Mallikarjun Kharge’s ‘Mataji’ Jibe at Nirmala Sitharaman: Rajya Sabha LoP Slams Union Budget 2024, Asserts ‘Only 2 States Got Pakora and Jalebi; Rest Received Nothing’.

"Let me speak," Kharge told the Chair. "Mujhe bol deta hun... Mataji bolne mein toh expert hain mujhe maloom hai. (Let me finish. Mataji is an expert in speaking, I am aware of that)." Dhankar shot back that Sitharaman, 64, was like a daughter to Kharge, 82. "Yeh mataji nahi, aap ke beti ke barabar hai," he said. Taking a swipe at Sitharaman, who represents Karnataka in the Upper House, Kharge said he was expecting that Karnataka would get the most but it got nothing.

"Yeh kursi bachane ke liye yeh sab hua hai... We condemn it and protest against it," he said before leading INDIA alliance parties out of the House. All other states did not find any mention, he said, terming the budget a "kursi-bachao" document. The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) lost the majority in the recently concluded general election and the regional parties ruling in Bihar and Andhra Pradesh are providing crucial support to the government as part of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA). Union Budget 2024: Rahul Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge Criticise Budget, Call It ‘Kursi Bachao Budget’.

The Janata Dal (United), which is in power in Bihar, and the Telugu Desam Party (TDP), the ruling party in Andhra Pradesh, have been demanding special economic packages for their states. In the budget presented on Tuesday, Sitharaman announced Rs 60,000 crore for Andhra Pradesh and pledged support to get Rs 15,000 crore in assistance from multilateral agencies for the southern state.

The finance minister said she did not name many states either in the interim budget presented in February ahead of the general election or in the full budget tabled in Parliament on Tuesday, but that does not mean that government schemes are not working for the states. She cited the example of Maharashtra, which was not named in either of the budgets and said that did not prevent the Union Cabinet from approving the Rs 76,000-crore Vadhavan port project in Dahanu in the state last month. "Did Maharashtra get ignored because I did not mention the name of Maharashtra? (An amount of) Rs 76,000 crore has been announced for that project," she said.

Sitharaman said she can go on to cite several other states that have got major projects. "If the speech does not mention the name of a particular state, does it mean that the schemes of the Government of India, the programmes of the Government of India, the externally-aided assistance which we obtain from the World Bank, ADB, AIIB and institutions like that do not go to these states? They go as per a routine," she said.

The expenditure statement of the government gives out the item-wise allocation, the finance minister pointed out. "This is a deliberate attempt of the opposition parties, led by the Congress, to give an impression to people that 'oh, nothing has been given to our states, it has only been given to two states'. "I would challenge the Congress party for all the budget speeches they have delivered, that in each of the budget speeches, have they named every state of the country?" she asked. "This is an outrageous allegation", which is "not acceptable", she added.

As the MPs belonging to opposition parties returned to the House, the finance minister said the Trinamool Congress (TMC) had raised questions on Tuesday about nothing being given to West Bengal in the budget, but the fact is that several schemes launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the last 10 years have not been implemented in the state. Her statement was met with vociferous opposition from the TMC members, who said the BJP-led Centre owes Rs 1 lakh crore to West Bengal. Dhankhar said 20 hours have been allocated for a discussion on the General Budget and the MPs as well as the finance minister will get adequate time to raise issues and respond.

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