Communist parties held a road blockade in Coimbatore on February 5, protesting the alleged neglect of Tamil Nadu in the Union Budget. Over 500 protesters, including senior leaders, were arrested.
Coimbatore: Members of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), Communist Party of India, and the All India Students' Federation staged a road blockade protest in front of the BSNL office in Coimbatore on Thursday. The demonstration was held to protest the alleged neglect of Tamil Nadu in the Union Budget presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.
Led by CPI(M) State Secretary G. Ramakrishnan and CPI State Secretary R. Mutharasan, over 500 protesters sat on the road, raising slogans against the BJP-led central government. The police later arrested the demonstrators and transported them in vehicles, causing a traffic disruption for about half an hour.
R. Mutharasan, State Secretary of CPI, stated, "We are protesting against the Union government's financial statement across Tamil Nadu today. We express our condolences to the families of those who lost their lives in Wayanad, Kerala, and assure that we will provide all possible assistance to the people of Kerala."
He further criticized the budget, saying, "This financial statement is not for the entire nation. The annual budget should address the needs of all states. Contrary to this, the Modi government has prioritized saving their administration and seats by allocating more funds to only two states - Bihar and Andhra Pradesh - while neglecting Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and several other states."
Mutharasan accused the central government of completely ignoring Tamil Nadu, which contributes significantly through GST and other taxes. He pointed out that no budget in the past had neglected a state to this extent. The CPI leader also noted the absence of any mention of the promised legislation on Minimum Support Price for agricultural produce.
G. Ramakrishnan, CPI(M) Central Committee member, added, "Protests are taking place in front of Union government offices today. The Modi government's budget seems to favor and provide concessions to the Ambani and Adani families, who recently spent 5,000 crore rupees on a wedding."
Ramakrishnan criticized the budget for not allocating funds to address unemployment among youth, protect struggling agriculture, safeguard small and medium industries, or provide relief to people suffering from price rises. He highlighted the severity of unemployment, citing an example from Uttar Pradesh where 47 lakh people applied for 60,000 police department vacancies.
Both leaders condemned the budget as being against the poor and middle class while favoring industrialists. They also accused the BJP government of completely denying fund allocation to non-BJP ruled states, violating the fundamental principle of federalism enshrined in the Constitution.