Congress leader and Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition, Rahul Gandhi, on Saturday criticized the Union Budget 2025, claiming it was designed to benefit only 20-25 individuals and enrich billionaires.
Dismissing the significance of the income tax exemption up to ₹12 lakh—one of the budget’s key highlights—he remarked, “The budget presented today is aimed at benefiting 25 people. While they may offer minor tax relief, the real objective is to hand over India’s wealth to 20-25 billionaires. In India, 50% belong to the backward class, 15% to Dalits, 8% to tribals, 15% to minorities, and around 5% to the poor from the general category.” He made these remarks at a public meeting in Delhi’s Sadar Bazar.
The budget will benefit 25 billionaires only – Pappu ?
— Mr Sinha (@MrSinha_) February 1, 2025
This guy is dangerously stupid…. And his supporters are even more stupid… pic.twitter.com/JkFGUO6wwf
He also pointed out the “lack of representation” of marginalized communities in key institutions nationwide. “Look at the owners of private hospitals, colleges, universities, large corporations, or even the judiciary. Where are the backward classes, Dalits, tribals, minorities, or poor general-category individuals among them? These positions are held by elected individuals and their associates,” he asserted.
Earlier today, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Union Budget 2025 in the Lok Sabha, outlining a roadmap for India’s economic growth, with a focus on agriculture, MSMEs, investment, and exports.
However, among a slew of announcements, what caught national attention was the significant revisions to the Income Tax slabs in the budget speech. Under the new tax structure, income up to ₹12 lakh will be exempt from tax under the New Tax Regime, while for salaried taxpayers, this exemption extends to ₹12.75 lakh.
Additionally, the highest tax bracket of 30% will now apply to income exceeding ₹24 lakh, up from the previous ₹15 lakh in 2024-25. The minimum taxable income has been increased from ₹3 lakh to ₹4 lakh. Furthermore, the ‘no tax’ threshold has been significantly raised from ₹7 lakh to ₹12 lakh.
The new slabs for the Income Tax calculation are as follows:
- Upto 4,00,000 – 0%
- ₹4,00,000-₹8,00,000 – 5%
- ₹8,00,000-₹12,00,000 – 10%
- ₹12,00,000-₹16,00,000 – 15%
- ₹16,00,000-₹20,00,000 – 20%
- ₹20,00,000-₹24,00,000 – 25%
- Above 24,00,000 – 30%
In a major relief for taxpayers, Sitharaman announced that no income tax would be levied on earnings up to ₹12 lakh. “A tax rebate is being provided for incomes up to ₹12 lakh (excluding special rate income such as capital gains), ensuring no tax liability for taxpayers in this bracket,” she stated.
The announcement was met with enthusiastic desk-thumping from the treasury benches, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. It was widely hailed on social media and instantly became of talking point in newsroom discussions, with many economists and political observers lavishing plaudits on the Finance Minister for the big bonanza she announced for the middle class, besides the augmented overlay for the Defence spending and other decisions.
Gandhi’s latest remarks on the Union Budget follow a line that he had taken for years now, casting billionaires and wealth creators as corrupt and dishonest, without of course providing any proof for it, even though his party members continue to cut deals with them, while also trying to woo the marginalised and the poor by demonstrating token concerns for their sufferings. Last year, Mr Gandhi also indulged in similar rhetorics, attacking the Finance Minister for the caste composition of her Budget team instead of offering a more nuanced and in-depth critique of the financial plan she proposed.
Rahul’s recent tropes attacking the Union Budget, therefore, reveal the Gandhi scion has learned little from his past mistakes and continues to trot out his vociferous opposition just for the heck of it, without actually getting into the nitty-gritty of the budget or the provisions that could spell disaster for the economy, as against a broad section of the population cutting across the ideological and political line who have hailed it for being groundbreaking and a step in the right direction.
