Budget a showoff, fails people: LoP in Vidhan Parishad

Lucknow: Leader of Opposition in the UP Legislative Council and Samajwadi Party MLC Lal Bihari Yadav on Tuesday said that the size of the Budget 2026-27 was a mere show-off, as how much of the last budget was spent till Feb also needed to be taken into account. The govt included the unspent budget from the last year to increase the size of the budget for the present financial year, he said while speaking during the discussion on budget 2026-27 in the Legislative Council. The budget, he said, failed to give assurance to farmers, a guarantee of jobs to youth, and security to women. "It is a document of administrative formalities and not of public expectations." The department of social welfare, which is meant to take up the welfare of backwards and physically challenged people, spent only 50.19% of the last year's Budget. "It shows the govt is against the backwards," said Yadav. The division of the PWD responsible for building roads spent only around 52.7% of the last year's Budget, he said, adding that this was so when the roads all over the state were in bad shape. "The Budget lacks a clear policy on removing regional differences," said the SP MLC. The culture department spent only 57.29% of the last year's budget when the govt used culture the most to come to power, he added. Similarly, the other departments also spent less from the last year's Budget, said Yadav, adding that excise spent only around 66%, industries spent around 47%, environment around 52.52%, and national integration around 16%.