Hours after Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Union Budget 2026-27 in Lok Sabha, Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday said the Budget is “blind to
India’s real crises”. He further highlighted how the youth are without jobs, manufacturing is falling and farmers are in distress.
Reacting to the Budget, the Congress leader took to X and wrote, “Youth without jobs. Falling manufacturing. Investors pulling out capital. Household savings plummeting. Farmers in distress. Looming global shocks – all ignored.”
“A Budget that refuses course correction, blind to India’s real crises,” Rahul Gandhi added.
Youth without jobs.
Falling manufacturing.
Investors pulling out capital.
Household savings plummeting.
Farmers in distress.
Looming global shocks – all ignored.A Budget that refuses course correction, blind to India’s real crises.
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) February 1, 2026
Adding to Rahul Gandhi’s opinion, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said that PM Modi government is running out of new ideas and the budget raises more questions than it answers regarding India’s significant economic, social and political challenges.
“It offers nothing for the poor. They have not presented any solution, positive suggestion, or concrete steps to control inflation. The Economic Survey indicates that trade uncertainty is a major challenge for India, yet the budget barely acknowledges this problem. Similarly, they have no plan to address the falling value of the rupee,” he said, adding, “The budget shows no intention of reviving consumer demand. The decline in domestic savings and the increasing burden of personal debt have also been ignored. There is no solution to the widespread unemployment crisis among educated youth.”
Budget 2026 Takeaways
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday announced the Union Budget 2026-27, giving a strong push to manufacturing, infrastructure and job creation, proposing a simpler tax and customs system. She also hailed the government’s modernisation steps as “reform express”.
In her speech, Sitharaman announced that the target for capex will be raised to Rs 12.2 lakh crore for FY27 from Rs 11.2 lakh crore earmarked for the current fiscal year.
She also announced a slew of measures to boost infrastructure in the country, including in tier-2 and tier-3 cities.
Notably, the budget was presented amid the ongoing global uncertainties, trade frictions and US tariffs.
