Congress activists protest, say middle class families ignored in Budget

Neeraj Bagga

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, February 2

Congress workers burnt effigies of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley to protest the Union Budget at the Hall Gate here today. They said it had nothing for the middle class families as the Centre had ignored them.

The protest of the members of the District Congress Committee (women) was led by Jatinder Kaur Sonia. She said the NDA government presented an “anti-people” Budget which would “dislodge” it in the next general elections. “The middle income group families haven’t received any reprieve in form of income tax exemption. People in the annual income group of Rs 5 lakh to Rs 10 lakh will have to pay Rs 1,125 more as tax. The government did not bring fossil fuels under the GST ambit.”

Since the Budget has nothing much for the middle class, city residents have criticised the Central Government.

Manpreet Singh, an employee of a nationalised bank, said, “There hasn’t been even a single benefit for the salaried class. Most of the middle class families are not very sound financially and they expect respite from the government besides financial support in case of any medical emergency.”

Manjot Singh, an employee of a private company, said uncertainty was more in the middle income group families. A rise in the prices of essential items means a burning hole in the pocket and family budget goes haywire. “The government has kept the middle and salaried class away from the benefits of the Budget. The Centre’s move to hike the minimum support price (MSP) is likely to fuel the food prices in the forthcoming procurement season,” he added.