Sharply critical of the Union Budget 2025, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said the government was focused on taxation relief without addressing the existential challenge of employment. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman listed income tax exemption up to ₹12 lakh as one of the key features of Budget 2025. “What happens if we don’t have a salary?” he asked sarcastically.
Tharoor said that tax benefits are only useful for those who have a stable job. He said that the Finance Minister did not mention unemployment in his speech, which means that policies to create jobs must be implemented so that the tax relief reaches the right people.
The Congress leader further slammed the government approach, saying that giving tax cuts without employment generation is an irony. He said that such measures are not going to work since tax relief would be irrelevant in the absence of employment opportunities.
The government’s priority seems to be reflected in the larger context, which is a cause for concern, as while tax cuts might be politically astute, it does not take care.