Rajya Sabha returns Manipur budget, GST Bills amid protests

The Rajya Sabha on Monday returned the Manipur Appropriation Bill, 2025, and the Manipur Goods and Services Tax (Amendment) Bill, 2025, amid opposition protests over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) issue.

The Manipur Appropriation Bill authorises payment and appropriation of certain sums out of the Consolidated Fund of the State of Manipur for services of the 2025-26 financial year.

The Manipur Goods and Services Tax (Amendment) Bill, 2025, seeks to implement the decisions approved by the GST Council. It will replace the Manipur Goods and Services Tax (Amendment) Ordinance, 2025.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, replying to the debate on the Bills, accused the Opposition of opposing the Manipur budget.

“Both Bills are very critical for Manipur. I would hope the Opposition, which has otherwise shown great interest in the state, will also take interest in this and allow Manipur to get the money that is due,” she said.

Sitharaman said Prime Minister Narendra Modi had ensured that Manipur’s development would not suffer. The additional allocations, she added, would support immediate needs such as the rehabilitation of internally displaced persons, security-related expenditure and deployment of the Central Armed Police Force.

“For the long-term sustainability of Manipur’s public finances, the Government of India is allowing the state to pre-pay its high-interest loans. The loan burden is being reduced by enabling repayment, for which Rs 633 crore has been provided,” she said.

As voting on the Bills took place, Opposition MPs were heard saying “no”.

“While the Opposition speaks about Manipur, when its budget and GST Bills are taken up, they are not only protesting over some other issue, but also voting against them,” she said.

The two Money Bills were returned to the Lok Sabha through a voice vote.