INDIA bloc to protest against Union Budget in Parliament today

New Delhi, July 24: Opposition INDIA bloc MPs will stage a protest in Parliament on Wednesday against the Union Budget.

The bloc has termed the Union Budget as "discriminatory" against the opposition-ruled states.

The decision to protest was taken at a meeting of the bloc on Tuesday after the Budget was tabled by the Union Finance Minister.

The meeting was attended by leaders of the bloc allies leaders, including the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, Congress' deputy leaders in both houses Pramod Tiwari and Gaurav Gogoi, NCP(SP) chief Sharad Pawar, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut, TMC's Derek O'Brien and Kalyan Banerjee, DMK's T.R. Baalu, JMM's Mahua Maji, AAP's Raghav Chadha and Sanjay Singh, and CPI(M)'s John Brittas. Congress general secretaries K.C. Venugopal and Jairam Ramesh were also present.

As part of the protest, Congress Chief Ministers will also boycott the NITI Aayog meeting scheduled for July 27.

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin also has said that he would not attend the NITI Aayog Governing Council meeting.

"This government's attitude is completely antithetical to Constitutional principles. We will not participate if it is solely designed to hide the discriminatory colours of this regime," Venugopal alleged.

On Tuesday, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman tabled the Budget for 2024-25, marking her seventh consecutive budget presentation and surpassing former Prime Minister Morarji Desai's record. This budget is the first under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's third term in office.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi later posted on social media: "The '#BudgetForViksitBharat' ensures inclusive growth, benefiting every segment of society and paving the way for a developed India."