Agartala, Feb 17: Responding to the statement of the BJP chief in Tripura and MP Rajib Bhattacharjee made on Sunday last stating that the opposition has no idea of the union budget, the Leader of Opposition and the CPI(M) state secretary Jitendra Chaudhury on Monday challenged the BJP for an open discussion on the budget.

Talking to the reporters here at Agartala on Monday, Chaudhury reiterated that the Union Budget presented by the Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on February 1 last is meant to serve the corporates and deprive the poor. The budget has deducted fund allocation under the MGNREGA like schemes, where poor will be deprived at large, while the government has failed to make additional investments in the key sectors like health and education as reflected from the budget, he added.

“Although the BJP organised thanks giving rally on Sunday last to hail the union budget, MP Rajib Bhattacharjee and other party leaders in the rally failed to describe the budget, rather they targeted the opposition CPI(M) to make false statement and switch over the mind of the people from the budget,” he told reporters.

He stated that BJP leaders are engaging in anti-Left politics out of frustration, as they realized that the BJP is gradually becoming isolated from the people. He accused the BJP of making false statements in public to maintain their influence.