Congress leader Sonia Gandhi remarked that President Droupadi Murmu appeared to be “growing weary” by the conclusion of her speech in Parliament during the inaugural day of the Budget Session 2025. “She [Murmu] struggled to speak, poor thing,” Sonia Gandhi expressed on Friday.
Droupadi Murmu delivered her address to the combined session of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha on Friday, officially commencing the 2025 Budget session of Parliament.
In addition to Sonia Gandhi, Independent MP and Congress supporter Pappu Yadav also criticized Murmu’s speech. Yadav made a disparaging comment by referring to her as a “stamp” and commenting that she merely recited a “love letter.”
“The President acts merely as a stamp. She simply has to read a love letter…” Pappu Yadav was cited by news agency ANI as saying. Yadav further criticized the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), alleging that they misled the electorate.
“Let’s begin with the economy, demonetization, black money, ₹15 lakh, 2 crore jobs, Ayushmann, Jan Dhan Yojana, MSPs, Manipur, Agniveer, reservation, caste census… The BJP is always dishonest and attempts to distract the public. A Mahakumbh occurs every 12 years, but they claimed it takes place once every 144 years. They neglect the common people and the state of the economy…” he stated to ANI.
In her address on Friday, President Droupadi Murmu mentioned that through the government’s initiatives, India is on track to become the third-largest economy globally. She emphasized the government’s mantra: “Sabka Sath, Sabka Vikas, Sabka Vishwas, Sabka Prayas.”
Economic Survey
Following the President’s address, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Economic Survey ahead of the Union Budget’s unveiling on Saturday.
The Economic Survey document, crafted by the Economic Division of the Department of Economic Affairs in the Ministry of Finance and formulated under the guidance of the chief economic adviser, offers insights into the economic state and various indicators for 2024-25 (April-March), along with projections for the next fiscal year.
The document may also provide a glimpse into the tone and substance of the actual budget for 2025-26, which will be presented on Saturday.
The budget presentation is scheduled for February 1. On that day, at 11 am, the Finance Minister will lay out the Union Budget in the Lok Sabha. The budget speech will detail the government’s fiscal policies, as well as its revenue and expenditure plans, taxation reforms, and other noteworthy announcements.
It is noteworthy that the budget session of parliament will commence on January 31 and is expected to conclude on April 4 as per the schedule.
