UPDATE: BJP dubs Budget as unimpressive

BJP today dubbed the General Budget as timid, tepid and unimpressive while the Congress hailed Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee for doing an "excellent job".  

"I do not see any great message in the Budget. It is timid, tepid and unimpressive," senior BJP leader and former Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha said.  

Congress spokesman Manish Tewari said, "The Budget is a very judicious mix of short term stimulus, medium term prudence and long term structural reforms."  "The Finance Minister has done an excellent job in times of global economic recession as no taxes have been imposed on the people," he told reporters outside Parliament House soon after the Budget was presented.  

Asked why the markets have not reacted positively, Tewari said the Finance Minister does not look only at the market while presenting the budget.  

On the fiscal deficit, the spokesman said that this has gone up due to the stimulus packages given in December last year to fight the economic recession.   

Tewari also hailed the decision to bring transparency in electoral funding.

Criticising the budget, Sinha asked, "what kind of presentation is this. What is the central message?".     

The former BJP Finance Minister said he had expected the government to list steps it was taking to fight global recession but the budget had nothing on it.     

He said the fiscal deficit has gone up and there was no boldness shown by the Finance Minister with regard to infrastructure projects like roads and airports.     

Former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda said there was nothing in the budget for the farmers.      

"I am deeply hurt. The farmers and the farming sector has been ignored," Gowda said.     

SP leader Mulayam Singh Yadav had little praise for the budget, saying people in the villages and rural areas have been neglected.     

"While the Rail Budget was sweet and sour this budget is only sour," Yadav said in his reaction, criticising the government for doing little for the farmers.     

Congress MP Girija Vyas said this kind of a budget during a global economic recession can only be described as a "miracle".     

Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said it was a "strong budget" and continuation of the policies of the UPA. 

The RJD chief said that the budget is such that it can neither be praised nor outrightly rejected.     

On the budget's provision to bring lawyers under the net of service tax, Prasad, in a lighter vein said, that former Finance Minister P Chidambaram, who himself is a lawyer "kept lawyers out of it but Pranab has brought them under the ambit of service tax."     

Asked about the budget's provision for putting service on goods transportation by trains, Prasad said, "this will further weaken railway's position. This can be cause problems to Mamata."     

BJP Vice President Venkaiah Naidu said the budget's provision to extend the limit of tax exemption by another Rs 10,000 annually is just tokenism.     

Dismissing the criticism, AICC general secretary Motilal Vora, said, "We have fulfilled the promises, we had made. It's a budget of Aam Admi."