Stalin, Siddaramaiah Among 4 CMs Boycotting PM Modi-Led NITI Aayog Meet To Protest 'Discriminatory' Budget

Congress general secretary K C Venugopal said that the Union Budget presented was extremely discriminatory and dangerous, and the party's CMs will boycott the NITI Aayog meeting. 

NITI Aayog Meeting: Chief Ministers of four states including three ruled by the Congress are set to boycott the NITI Aayog meeting to be chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on July 27. The move comes as a mark of protest against the "neglect" of the state’s demands in the Union Budget.

The four CMs are Karnataka’s Siddaramaiah, Telangana’s Revanth Reddy, Himachal Pradesh’s Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, and Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam leader and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin.

Congress general secretary K C Venugopal took to social media platform X on Tuesday and said that the Union Budget presented was extremely discriminatory and dangerous. 

"The Union Budget presented today was extremely discriminatory and dangerous, which completely goes against the principles of federalism and fairness that the Union Government must follow. In protest, INC CMs will be boycotting the NITI Aayog meeting scheduled for 27th July. This government’s attitude is completely antithetical to Constitutional principles. We will not participate in an event that is solely designed to hide the true, discriminatory colours of this regime, he said.

On the other hand, Tamil Nadu CM MK Stalin announced his decision to boycott the meeting at a press conference on Tuesday evening.  He said Tamil Nadu has been completely ignored in the Union Budget and to condemn it, he said he will boycott the July 27 NITI Aayog meet in Delhi.

Terming the budget a big disappointment, the Chief Minister said he felt that it is appropriate to boycott the NITI Aayog meet, since the Centre has totally ignored Tamil Nadu. DMK MPs will stage a protest in Delhi on July 24 over the Union Budget. "In order to establish Tamil Nadu's rights, we will continue to fight in the people's court."

Speaking to reporters, Stalin said that in order to satisfy a few regional parties that made a 'minority BJP' into 'majority BJP', schemes have announced in the Budget for a few states, apparently referring to Bihar and Andhra Pradesh, as reported by news agency PTI.

Though such schemes have been announced by the Centre, it is doubtful whether these will be implemented. Though the Union government had announced 'Metro Rail scheme' for Tamil Nadu, no fund allocation has been made for it (Chennai Metro Rail Phase-2) and the state is being deceived till date, Stalin said.

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said his government had decided to boycott NITI Aayog meeting. He said there is no point in attending the NITI Aayog meeting, as Kannadigas are not heard.

“Despite my earnest efforts in calling for an all-party MPs meeting in New Delhi to discuss Karnataka's essential needs, the Union Budget has neglected our state's demands,” Siddaramaiah said.

“Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, who also attended the meeting, has ignored the concerns of the people of Karnataka. We don't feel that Kannadigas are heard, and hence there is no point in attending the NITI Aayog meeting,” he posted on social media platform X.

“We have decided to boycott the NITI Aayog meeting, which will be chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 27 July, as a mark of protest,” he further stated.

Stating that even the farmers' demands to approve Mekedatu and Mahadayi projects have been ignored, the CM said, “There was no attempt to rectify their sin of reducing funds to our state under various categories.” Funds for metro and other infra projects are still a distant dream, he added.

He said that Modi is unable to see states other than Andhra Pradesh and Bihar because "his eyes are on the position of Prime Minister". "His agenda is exposed in front of the people. We hope the people of our state stand with us in our fight for justice,” the CM said.

Himachal Ignored In Budget: CM Sukhu

Himachal Pradesh CM Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said on Tuesday that the hill state has been completely ignored and got nothing in the Union budget presented by Sitharaman.

Speaking to reporters, Sukhu said that the discrimination is clearly visible in the budget as the NDA allies in Bihar and Andhra Pradesh have been rewarded, but Himachal's legitimate claim for a special package for last year's monsoon disaster finds no mention in the budget.

"The cessation of GST compensation has put Himachal Pradesh in a precarious financial position, resulting in an annual loss the state can't afford. A special financial package was urgently needed in the analogy of Bihar and Andhra Pradesh to mitigate this loss and support our state's fiscal stability," the chief minister said, as quoted by PTI.

Terming the budget as anti-poor, inequitable and not futuristic, Sukhu said it is a total opportunistic budget and fails to address the critical issues of unemployment, rising prices, and growing inequality.

Union Budget 2024-25

On Tuesday, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman tabled the Union Budget 2024 in Parliament. The FM announced major changes in personal income tax rules. In this year's Union Budget, the Centre has made several announcements for farmers and women and also took into consideration the issue of unemployment.

In the Union Budget, the government announced a series of measures for Andhra Pradesh, including arranging Rs 15,000 crore this fiscal and in future years for the development of the capital city of the state. Presenting Union Budget 2024-25, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the government will also facilitate special financial support for the development of the capital city.