Punjab Budget “Act of Deception”

Hoshiarpur/Mar.9/Daljeet Ajnoha :
Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) Punjab president and Chandigarh in‑charge Dr. Avtar Singh Karimpuri has slammed the budget presented by the Punjab government in the state assembly, calling it “directionless,” “anti‑people,” and a “cruel joke” played on Dalits, backward classes and the poor.Dr. Karimpuri, speaking at a press conference here, said the budget is nothing but a “magic trick of numbers” that offers no concrete policy for empowering Dalits, backward‑caste communities and workers. He accused the AAP‑led state government of ignoring the socio‑economic upliftment of the Bahujan Samaj while using welfare schemes as a mere electoral tool.Women’s cash scheme a “deceit”Karimpuri sharply criticised the government’s decision to deposit ₹1,000 and ₹1,500 per month into the bank accounts of women across the state, calling it a “betrayal” of women. He claimed the scheme is designed only to “loot votes” in the election year, after four years of the state’s mothers having lost their sons to drug mafia, while the government’s real intention is “looting, not serving.”Alleged “fraud” on DalitsThe BSP leader alleged that the state government has once again “cheated” Dalits. He said the government claims to have earmarked page 67 of the budget and 35.23% of the overall allocation for Scheduled Castes, but insisted that 35% of the total budget would amount to around ₹92,000 crore, whereas the actual Dalit‑linked provision is only about ₹17,700 crore.“This means the government has swallowed around ₹65,000 crore meant for Dalits on paper,” Karimpuri claimed, adding that the funds for post‑matric scholarships and welfare schemes are “like a pinch of cumin in a camel’s mouth”—symbolically close to nothing.Portraying Punjab as sliding into debtKarimpuri accused the AAP government of pushing Punjab into a “quagmire of debt” and said the worst impact is falling on the poor. He pointed out that the budget makes no concrete plan for permanent employment for unemployed youth, which he termed “misfortune.”While the budget details how much money is being spent on items like chole, turmeric, salt and oil, he said, it remains “completely silent” on how many teachers will be recruited for schools. This, he argued, shows the government wants to create “beggars” in poor households, not “officers.”“Punjab Sambhalo” crusade to trigger changeAsserting that the Bahujan Samaj must shift from being “askers” to “rulers,” Karimpuri said BSP’s “Punjab Sambhalo” campaign has become “the need of the hour.” He announced that the party would take the “failures” of this budget to “public tribunals” across the state and launch awareness campaigns in every village of Punjab under the slogan “Satta Parkarao” (acquire power).Karimpuri reiterated that BSP’s “principal goal” is to establish a government in the spirit of Babasaheb Dr. B.R. Ambedkar and late Kanshi Ram, aimed at the real development of Punjab.