New Delhi, July 25 After Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann announced on Thursday that he will not attend the NITI Aayog meeting in the national capital on Saturday as the Union Budget failed to allocate funds to Punjab, former India cricketer and AAP Rajya Sabha MP Harbhajan Singh said there was nothing for the state in the Budget tabled on Tuesday.
In an exclusive chat with IANS, Harbhajan Singh said: “There could have been a lot in the Budget, but it was not satisfactory.
“There is nothing in this Budget for Punjab. If there is nothing for Punjab, it means there is nothing for our farmers, no subsidy…
“There could have been a lot in this Budget for the state. This Budget is beneficial for one or two states, but there is nothing in it for us.”
Earlier on Thursday, Bhagwant Mann told mediapersons in Jalandhar, "Punjab should have been given special status (in the Budget). But even Punjab's rights were not given. That is why we will boycott the NITI Aayog meeting for which all the Chief Ministers have been called by the Prime Minister on July 27."
The Chief Minister also termed the Budget ‘Kursi Bachao Budget’ and accused the Central government of political vendetta against non-BJP ruled states.
Mann said Punjab, being a main and major grain-producing state, was ignored in the Budget, adding that even the Finance Minister's announcement of providing ration to 80 crore people did not mention the state.
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