"People were fooled": Tamil Nadu CM on interim budget

Chennai: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin said on Thursday that ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, people were expecting a price reduction of petrol and diesel in the interim budget presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman but were "fooled." In a statement issued here, CM Stalin said, "As the Parliament election is nearing, people were expecting a lot of announcements. They were expecting a price reduction on petrol, diesel, and gas. But people were fooled with this budget."
The CM said during her interim budget speech Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman mentioned Chess Grandmaster Praggnanandhaa (to highlight achievements made by India's youth in sports) She also said that the country has 80 Grand Masters now. "But why does the Finance Minister forget about the Chess Olympiad, which was hosted by Tamil Nadu on a global level," said the statement. Criticising her budget speech, CM Stalin said, "It is highly condemnable that in budget it has mentioned that the poor, women, youths, and farmers belong to four castes." "Imposing a regressive Varnasharma opinion during the national budget is highly condemnable, and it is against social justice," CM said in the statement. Varnashrama Dharma is a profound concept that defines the duties and responsibilities of individuals based on their varna (social class) and ashrama (stage of life). Earlier during the day, presenting the interim budget in Parliament, Sitharaman noted that India has over 80 chess grandmasters compared to about 20 in 2010.
"The country is proud of our youth scaling new heights in sports. The highest ever medal tally in Asian Games and Asian Para Games in 2023 reflects a high confidence level," she said. "Chess prodigy and our number-one ranked player Praggnanandhaa put up a stiff fight against the reigning World Champion Magnus Carlsson in 2023. Today, India has over 80 chess grandmasters compared to little over 20 in 2010," she added. The Budget Session of Parliament commenced on Wednesday with President Droupadi Murmu addressing a joint sitting of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. The Indian economy is projected to grow close to 7 per cent in the financial year 2024-25 which starts this April, said the Ministry of Finance in a review report. India's economy grew 7.2 per cent in 2022-23 and 8.7 per cent in 2021-22. The Indian economy is expected to grow 7.3 per cent in the current financial year 2023-24, remaining the fastest-growing major economy.