DMK chief M Karunanidh today flayed the Tamil Nadu budget, saying it was like a "cotton candy" being given to children.
Like the previous budgets and Governor's addresses, yesterday's exercise by Finance Minister O Panneerselvam had a lot of praises for Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, he said.
Contrary to assurances made by AIADMK during the 2011 general elections, economic growth was impacted for the second consecutive year, he said in a statement quoting the admission made by Panneerselvam.
The DMK patriarch pointed out that the growth rate of Tamil Nadu was 13.12 per cent in 2010-11 when his party was in power while it had dipped to 4.14 per cent in 2012-13 with the AIADMK at the helm of affairs.
"They keep repeating that it is a tax-free budget. All of DMK's budgets from 2006-11 were tax-free ones," he said, adding, the ruling AIADMK had, however, hiked the prices of milk, increased power tariff and bus fares to "thousands of crores of rupees" after coming to power.
He asked if it was a matter of pride to make no fresh imposts ahead of Lok Sabha elections while having already "burdened" people by hiking prices.
The government was 'misleading' people on the power front, he said in an apparent reference to continuing power shortage. He wondered if power shortage has been completely overcome.
Government had said the power situation was getting better with addition to installed capacity.
If industrial growth was picking up, why did Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramiah hold a business conclave in Coimbatore recently to attract investments there, Karunanidhi asked.
The proposed Global Investor Meet in October 2014 was announced only after he had rasied questions about the Coimbatore conclave, he claimed.
Also, there was no word on increase in minimum support price for paddy, sugarcane and milk.
"Overall, Tamil Nadu government's budget is like the cotton candy given to children," he said.
