Didn't meet Karnataka's demands, were handed "empty vessel": CM Siddaramaiah slams Budget 2025

Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India], February 1 (ANI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah slammed the Union Budget 2025 presented on Saturday and said it was very disappointing, without any vision and did not meet the demands of Karnataka.
"This budget has not met the demands of Karnataka state. The central government has not announced any of the projects we requested from Karnataka in this budget. Nothing has been announced on AIIMS which we have asked in Raichur. "I have seen the key highlights of the Modi government's budget. The Union Budget, from the country's perspective, may be fine, but from Karnataka's perspective, it is very disappointing," CM Siddaramaiah said.
Attacking BJP further, he said that the centre had given an "empty vessel" to Karnataka, and no money was allotted to the irrigation projects in Karnataka. He further alleged that the state's projects have received "not a single rupee".
"The central government had invited us to the pre-budget meeting and Minister Krishna Byre Gowda attended on behalf of the state. We had placed several demands from Karnataka, but not a single demand has been fulfilled by the central government. We are in the second position among the states that pay the most taxes, but Bihar and Andhra Pradesh have received more than us. This can be called the budget for Andhra and Bihar," he said.
"The central government has not given anything for the Mahadayi, Mekedatu, and Krishna projects. In Bengaluru, nothing has been allocated for the special corridor project. The honorarium for Anganwadi workers and ASHA workers has not been increased. The central government has not provided a single rupee for any of its projects. We had requested to increase the urban housing scheme allocation to Rs 5 lakh, and the rural area fund to be raised from Rs 75,000 to Rs 3 lakh," he added.
This comes after Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, during her Union Budget 2025 speech, announced that no income tax will be payable on income up to Rs 12 lakh, providing significant relief to taxpayers, especially the middle class.
This limit will be Rs 12.75 lakh for salaried taxpayers, counting Rs 75,000 of the standard deduction. She also stated that the new income tax regime will be simpler, with a special focus on benefiting the middle class.
The announcement by the Finance Minister of this big relief to the middle class was met by a loud thumping of the desks by the treasury benches led by PM Narendra Modi.
Meanwhile, the Lok Sabha was adjourned on Saturday following the presentation of the Union Budget by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. The House will reconvene on February 3 at 11 a.m. (ANI)