Congress panelist Shagun Dutt takes swipe at Sitharaman’s budget, says Himachal BJP had to call central leaders to explain its ‘benefits’
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Himachal Pradesh Congress Committee state media panelist Shagun Dutt has expressed disappointment over the union budget presented on July 23 by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, claiming that Himachal Pradesh had once again been neglected.
Dutt criticised the state BJP leaders for their inability to articulate the benefits of the budget, stating that they had to call upon leaders from the Centre to explain its merits.
“Himachal has again been disappointed in the budget presented by the central government,” Dutt said in a statement. “The state BJP leaders have shrugged off their responsibility of commenting on it and have tried to entangle the BJP in the maze of figures by calling leaders from the Centre. This clearly shows that the state BJP leaders themselves have not understood what Himachal has got in this budget.”
Dutt highlighted that despite the severe natural disaster Himachal faced last year, the central government has not provided adequate support. “The central government should have made a provision of a special budget to compensate for the damage caused to the national highway during the disaster because Himachal’s economy is based on tourism,” Dutt asserted. “The BJP should make public how much assistance has been released to Himachal under which head in the central budget.”
Dutt also took aim at the regional BJP leadership, accusing them of focusing solely on political maneuvering rather than the state’s development. “The regional leadership of BJP was only focused on bringing down the Congress government in the state and the people of the state gave a befitting reply to it in the by-elections,” Dutt stated.
Furthermore, Dutt criticised Leader of the Opposition Jai Ram Thakur for his lack of constructive engagement. “It would have been better if the Leader of Opposition Jairam Thakur had understood the importance of his post and played the role of a positive opposition in the development of the state,” Dutt said. “Instead, he went to Delhi and was seen only creating obstacles in the development of Himachal.”