Glad to know Hon'ble FM has read Congress manifesto: Chidambaram

New Delhi, June 23 (IANS) After Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman introduced many schemes while presenting the Budget on Tuesday, former Finance Minister P. Chidambaram said that he is glad to know that the Finance Minister has read the Congress manifestation of 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

“I am glad to know that the Hon'ble FM has read the Congress Manifesto LS 2024 after the election results,” the former Finance Minister wrote on X.

He said that he is also happy that the Finance Minister has virtually adopted the Employment-linked incentive (ELI), which he claimed was outlined on page 30 of the Congress manifesto.

“I am also happy that she has introduced the Apprenticeship scheme along with an allowance to every apprentice spelt out on page 11 of the Congress Manifesto,” the former Finance Minister said.

He also taunted the Finance Minister, saying that he wished that Nirmala Sitharaman had copied some other ideas from the Congress Manifesto.

“I was pleased to hear that the FM will abolish the Angel Tax. Congress has pleaded for the abolition for many years and most recently in the Congress Manifesto on page 31,” the former Finance Minister wrote on X.

However, he said that he would also shortly list the missed opportunities.

Earlier, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman laid out nine priorities of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government in the Budget with a focus on employment, skilling, agriculture and manufacturing.

“In this budget, we focus on employment, skilling, MSMEs and the middle class. Agriculture research will be transformed to focus on raising productivity and climate resilient varieties," said FM Sitharaman while presenting her seventh Budget.

She said that the people of India have reposed their faith in the government led by PM Modi and re-elected it for a historic third term.