Editor Mr.Mayank Rawat ( Chief Editor Mr. Rohit Mishra )
New Delhi: AAP Delhi president Saurabh Bharadwaj on Wednesday said that Delhi’s annual budget figures debunked chief minister Rekha Gupta’s claim that his party’s govt left the state treasury empty.
Bharadwaj said the data released on Tuesday confirmed that AAP govt left behind Rs 2,965 crore for the new administration. He also alleged that BJP govt prepared the Rs 1 lakh crore budget on “imaginary figures” with no clear policy direction. He questioned if BJP planned to hike taxes on Delhi’s traders to meet its ambitious revenue target.
“The Delhi budget has factually exposed CM Rekha Gupta’s lies. When she was asked when govt would start giving Rs 2,500 per month to women, she claimed that the govt treasury was empty. But Delhi govt’s own records state that the opening balance of this budget is Rs 2,965 crore. The opening balance indicates how much money the previous dispensation left for the new govt,” Bharadwaj said.
He also questioned where Delhi govt will get Rs 1 lakh crore for the 2025-26 financial year. “Will BJP govt increase taxes to generate Rs 1 lakh crore?” he asked. Bharadwaj also said that when AAP govt proposed borrowing Rs 10,000 crore from the National Small Savings Fund, Delhi’s finance department said it could cause a major crisis. But now the finance department has proposed borrowing Rs 15,000 crore from NSSF.
Delhi Congress president Devender Yadav said despite the increase in tax collection, the budget allocation for public welfare schemes was drastically cut. He also claimed that BJP govt was running away from discussion on the budget.
Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva said that Bharadwaj was trying to portray that AAP govt left behind a balance in the treasury. “The truth is that AAP govt failed Delhi on development and maintenance and looted the exchequer. AAP govt presented a Rs 77,000 crore budget for 2024-25 but revised it to Rs 69,500 crore. It could not even ensure spending that lowered amount on development in Delhi, which has left a balance of Rs 2,965 crore in the treasury. It is regrettable that Bharadwaj claims the unspent budget amount left as AAP govt’s positive achievement,” Sachdeva said.
Mayank Rawat
