Empowering minorities not on PM's agenda: Oppn in Lok Sabha

Cong's Chowdhury also spoke about the privatisation of national assets which has led to unemployment

During the debate on the Budget in the Lok Sabha, which was initiated by BJP MP Tejasvi Surya, several Opposition members questioned the reduction of allocation of funds for fellowships for minority students.

Leading the Opposition’s charge was Congress’s Lok Sabha leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, who pointed out the reduction in the allocation to the Ministry of Minority Affairs, which has been slashed by 38 per cent. “PM Modi’s ‘Sabka Sath Sabka Vikas’ agenda does not include empowering minorities. Minorities are viewing it as yet another in a series of Islamophobic decisions,” he said.

Chowdhury also spoke about the privatisation of national assets which has led to unemployment. He also asked the finance minister to reveal the involvement of Indian banks in the Adani group.

AIUDF MP Ajmal Badruddin said that the Budget has no provisions for minorities, and said that the Northeast has been neglected too. “How will the country function if one side of the body is sick? You have reduced the minorities fund, even if you do not want to make provisions for Muslims, you can consider Parsis and other minorities. We will survive, but what about other minorities and parties,” he said.

Congress MP Dean Kuriakose pointed at the need for a better fund allocation for the environment ministry, urging for better handling of human-wildlife conflict, and said that the government should fix a minimum support price(MSP) for cardamom, rubber and pepper.