P Chidambaram and Congress leader Shashi Tharoor during an interview with PTI
Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram, a former Finance Minister in the UPA government, expressed mixed feelings about the Budget 2024-25. He welcomed certain announcements made by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, including the abolition of the Angel Tax and the introduction of new apprenticeship schemes. Chidambaram noted that these initiatives were part of the Congress party’s manifesto.
In his post on X (formerly Twitter), Chidambaram highlighted the following points:
Angel tax abolition: Chidambaram expressed pleasure that the Angel Tax would be abolished, a stance the Congress has advocated for many years and recently included in their manifesto.
“I was pleased to hear that the FM will abolish the Angel Tax. Congress has pleaded for the abolition for many years and most recently in the Congress Manifesto on page 31,” he wrote.
The Angel Tax refers to the income tax levied on funding raised by unlisted companies or startups if their valuation exceeds the company’s fair market value.
Employment-linked incentive (ELI): He appreciated the adoption of the ELI as it aligns with their vision for employment generation.
“I am happy she has virtually adopted the Employment-linked incentive (ELI) outlined on page 30 of the Congress Manifesto,” he said.
Apprenticeship scheme: The new scheme and allowance for apprentices, mentioned on page 11 of the Congress Manifesto, were also lauded by Chidambaram.
“I am also happy that she has introduced the Apprenticeship scheme along with an allowance to every apprentice spelt out on page 11 of the Congress Manifesto,” the Congress leader said.
Chidambaram expressed hope that other ideas from the Congress’ election manifesto could have been incorporated, indicating there were missed opportunities in the Budget. “I shall shortly list the missed opportunities,” Chidambaram said, concluding his posts.
No mention of MNREGA, steps to improve income: Shashi Tharoor Congress leader Shashi Tharoor echoed Chidambaram’s sentiments, welcoming the abolition of the Angel Tax, noting he had recommended its removal to former Finance Minister Arun Jaitley over five years ago.
He, however, referred to the entire Budget 2024 presentation as “underwhelming”, criticising it for not addressing key issues affecting the common man, such as MNREGA and steps to improve incomes. Tharoor claimed that the measures to address income disparity were insufficient and labelled the government’s employment initiatives as mere “token gestures”.
“It is an underwhelming budget. I didn’t hear anything about the key issues facing the common man. There is no mention of MNREGA, and insufficient mention of steps taken to improve the income of a common person,” Tharoor said to news agency ANI.
Sitharaman’s presentation of the Budget 2024-25 marks her seventh consecutive Budget, surpassing the record of former Prime Minister Morarji Desai. This was the first Budget of the third term of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government.
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