Should Karnataka Just Eat Peanuts?

War of words between ruling, opposition parties over budget; Union Govt biased in favour of NDA-ruled states, says Congress; Growth-oriented & well-balanced schemes, counters BJP

- EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE @Bengaluru

Members of the ruling Congress in Karnataka called the Union Budget presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman "biased," favouring states ruled by BJP and its allies. Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar said that the budget was a big blow not just to the aspirations of Karnataka, but to the very foundation of democracy. "With the Union Budget, the BJP Govt has once again proved that it doesn't pay any attention to the prayers of millions of Kannadigas. All it does care about is ways to get power wherever elections are scheduled. This budget is a big blow not just to the aspirations of Karnataka but to the very foundation of democracy, where a govt is openly showing its bias against people of a state, dashing their right to prosperity, equality, and development," he posted.

Industries Minister MB Patil said that keeping capital expenditure largely unchanged was not good for economic growth. "This slows down the pace of development. To face competition posed by neighbouring China, we need to increase capital expenditure. But it is unfortunate that there is no such proposal in the budget," Patil said.

He took a dig at the Modi government for not announcing any specific initiative for Karnataka, the IT, BT and startup capital of the country. "The state's share in the country's overall export turnover is high. Therefore, we should have been given something more," he said.