The Lok Sabha's discussion on Budget 2024 turned heated today, especially marked by a sharp exchange of words between Trinamool Congress leader Abhishek Banerjee and the Speaker Om Birla. Banerjee had pointed out, in the course of his speech, that the three farm laws, which were brought in by the Narendra Modi government during its second tenure and which were eventually repealed, were passed without any consultation with farmers, nor were any farmer organisations, or Opposition parties were taken into confidence. Taking cudgels against this assertion, Birla intervened to correct Banerjee.
"This House discussed the issue for five-and-a-half hours," Birla said. To this, Banerjee continued to persist with his claim, leading eventually to Birla to retort: "When the Speaker speaks, he speaks right. You correct yourself."
Banerjee, who represents West Bengal's Diamond Harbour and is seen as TMC's de facto number 2 after Mamata Banerjee, used his speech to target the Narendra Modi government over various issues. During the course of his speech, he even brought in the issue of demonetisation, to which Birla again retorted that the issue dates back to 2016 and urged Banerjee to stick to the 2024 budget. But Banerjee retorted back and said: "A few days back, in the same house, wasn’t Emergency discussed? That happened 50 years ago. Why can’t I speak on demonetisation?"
Banerjee went on to criticise the 2024 budget and said that it lacked a clear vision and claimed it was designed to appease BJP coalition partners rather than address the needs of India's 140 crore people. Banerjee characterised the budget as being crafted to benefit two political parties -- allies JDU and TDP -- accusing the government of bribery to buy time before it collapses.
He pointed specifically to the support from TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu and JDU leader Nitish Kumar, which he argued helped the BJP secure the numbers needed to form the government. Banerjee suggested that the Budget was overly generous to Bihar and Andhra Pradesh, ruled by the BJP's key allies, while neglecting other states.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman responded sharply to the Trinamool's criticism. She highlighted that many schemes introduced by Prime Minister Modi over the past decade have not been implemented in West Bengal, questioning the state's audacity to criticise the Budget now. Banerjee challenged Sitharaman to release a white paper detailing the funds allocated to Bengal since the BJP's defeat in the 2021 state elections.
Banerjee also accused the Centre of withholding MGNREGA funds and delaying the release of funds for homes sanctioned under the PM Awas Yojana in Bengal. He criticised the government for allocating funds to purchase aircraft and construct buildings as part of the Central Vista project while millions of poor Indians remain homeless.
Towards the end of his speech, Banerjee concluded by saying, "You BJP are on borrowed time. Kursi ki peti bandh lijiye, mausam bigarne wala hai." ("Keep your seat belts on, weather is about to become very bad").