Congress leader and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi on Sunday came down heavily on the Union Budget 2026, accusing the Narendra Modi government of ignoring India’s deepening economic and social crises and refusing to undertake course correction. Reacting to the Budget, Gandhi said it failed to address pressing issues such as unemployment, distress in agriculture, declining household savings and weakening investor confidence.
“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,” Gandhi said in a statement.
Congress President and Rajya Sabha LoP Mallikarjun Kharge reacting to it said, "The Modi government has run out of new ideas. This 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... 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. The Finance Commission's recommendations require further study, but they do not appear to provide any relief to state governments facing serious financial constraints. Inequality has surpassed the levels seen during the British Raj. But the budget doesn't even mention it. Nor have they made any provision for assistance for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes, Economically Weaker Sections, or minorities..."