Like most other Opposition parties, the CPI(M) too criticised the Interim Budget. One leader said that while President Pratibha Patil’s address to Parliament was the first draft of the Congress party’s election manifesto, the Interim Budget was the second draft. Hannan Mollah, a prominent member of the CPI(M)’s central committee, also chose to give ‘evidence’ of the Interim Budget being lacklustre.
“Had it been a good budget, the TV channels would have continuously run stories throughout the day, till late at night. But within two hours of the government’s presentation of the Budget, the channels started airing stories on Shah Rukh Khan’s operation. This too proves how ineffective the Budget was”, he said.