‘Band-aid for bullet wounds’: What political leaders said on FM Nirmala Sitharaman’s Budget 2025 speech

Budget 2025: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Union Budget 2025 on Saturday, February 1. Reacting to her speech, political leaders have now shared their responses.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi lauded the Union Budget, presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, as a “people’s budget” that puts more money in the hands of people and said it is a force-multiplier that will increase investments and lead to growth.

Opposition’s reaction on Union Budget 2025

While taking a swipe at the Centre, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi called Budget 2025, ‘A band-aid for bullet wounds.’

Taking to X, Rahul Gandhi said, “Amid global uncertainty, solving our economic crisis demanded a paradigm shift. But this government is bankrupt of ideas.”

As Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman spoke of four engines of development, Congress general secretary in charge of communications, Jairam Ramesh said that the Budget was “completely derailed”. 

Taking to X, Jairam Ramesh, said, “The FM spoke of four engines: Agriculture, MSMEs, Investment, and Exports. There are so many engines that the Budget has been completely derailed.”

DMK MP Dayanidhi Maran expressed his disappointment with the Union Budget 2025, calling it an election-focused strategy rather than a balanced financial plan. Maran claimed that the Budget was designed to appeal to voters in Delhi, especially with the upcoming Delhi elections on February 5.

“It’s a very disappointing Budget. The Budget seems to be like that, it’s planned in such a way to woo the voters for Delhi, especially the Delhi elections coming on 5th February. The FM has given a big exemption saying that for ₹12 Lakhs, there is no tax. Then she goes on to say that there is a slab of 10% for ₹8-12 Lakhs. So, it is very confusing. I think the devil is in the details.”

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor also raised a critical point and added that without jobs, where will the income come from? “For you to benefit from income tax relief, you actually need jobs. Unemployment was not mentioned by the Finance Minister,” he said. Tharoor highlighted that to benefit from tax relief, people need employment, a topic that was overlooked by the Finance Minister.

TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee criticised the budget, claiming it offers nothing for the common man. He said that everything has been given to Bihar. While speaking to reporters, Banerjee said, “Everything has been given to Bihar. When the budget was presented in July 2024, everything was done for Andhra Pradesh and Bihar. For the last 10 years, BJP has been in power and Bengal has not got anything, it is sad and unfortunate…”

Samajwadi Party MP Dimple Yadav called on the government to give details about the devotees who lost their lives during the Maha Kumbh. She added, “We demand the state govt to tell the reason behind the tragedy and also if they’ll punish the officers responsible for that.”

Telangana Minister Konda Surekha on Saturday said she was completely “disappointed” with the union budget. “I have no words to express the sadness of not receiving enough allocation to the younger state of the country, Telangana, from India’s Finance Minister, @nsitharaman,” she said, in a post on ‘X’.

CPI MP P Sandosh Kumar said that the state of Kerala was neglected once again. He also criticised the government for failing to address one of the key demands of farmers, the Minimum Support Price (MSP), and pointed out that no mention was made regarding solutions for employment issues.

“None of the demands were actually fulfilled by the government. New commission has been appointed by the government that will look into the regulatory laws… MSP is one of the major demands raised by the farmers of the country, not even a single mention about that… Nothing to tackle with the employment issues.” 

(With inputs from agencies)