[Marxistindia] Left Parties Call on Alternative Proposals for Budget

[news from the cpi(m)]

February 4, 2025

Press Release

 

The leaders of the Left parties - Communist Party of India (Marxist),
Communist Party of India, Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist)
Liberation, Revolutionary Socialist Party and All India Forward Bloc - met
on February 3, 2025 and discussed the Union Budget.  They have issued the
following statement:

 

Left Parties Call on Alternative Proposals for Budget

 

The Union Budget 2025-26 is a betrayal of the immediate and basic
requirements of the people. Instead of addressing the problem of demand in
the economy due to the lack of purchasing power in the hands of the people,
mass unemployment and shrinking wages, the Modi government has, through the
Budget, sought to stimulate the economy by giving concessions to the rich
even as expenditures are cut.  Instead of mobilizing resources by taxing the
rich and the big corporate houses and expanding public investments that
would help generate employment and ensure a minimum wage for people, it has
chosen to do the opposite.  The Budget promotes greater accumulation of
wealth by promoting private investment, placing public assets at the service
of the private sector and privatization of the power sector and so on.  

 

The Union Budget completely neglects the issue of unemployment and
expenditure on food subsidies, agriculture and allied activities, education,
health, rural development, social welfare and urban development are stagnant
or lower than last year, if one factors in inflation.  The allocation for
MNREGA remains stagnant at Rs. 86,000 crore, even as the demand has grown.
The raising of the income tax exemption limit to Rs. 12 lakhs has provided
relief to a section of the people, but a wider number of working people who
are suffering from price rise and indirect taxes like GST have been left
out.  The loss suffered by raising the tax exemption limit could have been
met by increasing the rates of taxation on the richer sections and the
corporates.  But the government has chosen not to do so and instead provided
a bonanza to the corporate sector and the super-rich.  

 

The Left parties reject all the anti-people proposals in the Budget and have
resolved to demand that they be replaced by the following alternative
proposals, which can help to create demand by increasing the purchasing
power of the people, generate employment opportunities and raising wages.
The alternative proposals will help to ensure the right of people to
education, health and social security benefits.

 

The Left parties demand the introduction of the following proposals, which
should find a place in the Finance Bill:

 

1) Introduce a wealth tax of 4 per cent on the 200 billionaires (in dollar
terms) in the country; increase corporation tax.

 

2) Provide legal guarantee for Minimum Support Price for agricultural
produce and withdraw the draft National Policy Framework on Agricultural
Marketing.

 

3) Halt privatization of public sector units and handing over of public
assets to the private sector through the National Monetisation Pipeline.
Withdraw 100 per cent FDI in insurance sector.

 

4) Increase MNREGA allocation by 50 per cent; introduce urban employment
guarantee Act; increase the Centre's provision for old-age pensions and
other social security benefits.

 

5) Increase outlays for health to 3 per cent of GDP and education to 6 per
cent of  GDP.

 

6) Increase food subsidy to strengthen public distribution system.

 

7) Increase allocation for SC, ST sector and for women and child development
substantially, including increased outlay for ICDS; increase the Central
share of the honorarium for scheme workers.

 

8) Increase transfers of funds to the states and funds for
Centrally-sponsored schemes substantially. Scrap the cesses and surcharges
on petroleum products which are not included in the divisible pool for
sharing with states.

 

The Left parties will campaign for the inclusion of the above
demands/proposals in the Union Budget before it is finally adopted through
the Finance Bill.  To mobilise the people in support of these proposals, the
Left parties will conduct a week-long mass campaign from February 14 to 20.
The state units of the Left parties will chalk out the plans to conduct mass
campaign and reach the maximum number of people through door-to-door
campaign, street corner meetings, demonstrations and rallies.

 

 

Sd/-

Prakash Karat                                    

Co-ordinator, Polit Bureau, CPI(M)


 

D Raja

General Secretary, CPI

 

Dipankar Bhattacharya

General Secretary, CPI(ML) Liberation

 

Manoj Bhattacharya                                 

General Secretary, RSP

 

G. Devarajan

General Secretary, AIFB


 

 

 

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