The Union Budget is a big disappointment for Karnataka, minister and Congress president Laxmi Hebbalkar said on Sunday.
Karnataka has been the target of repeated neglect by successive governments. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has completely ignored Karnataka in this budget as well, she said.
Despite being elected to the Rajya Sabha from Karnataka, Ms. Sitharaman “ignored our long-pending demands for equitable tax distribution and scheme support”.
“All outstanding dues have not been released. It ignores the fact that the people of the state have elected the highest number of BJP members in the last few Lok Sabha elections. Karnataka has not received its due despite being represented at the center by its senior leaders Basavaraj Bommai and Jagadish Shettar and Union Minister Shobha Karandlaje,” she said.
Meanwhile, MP Priyanka Jarkiholi criticized the budget for not announcing any major project for North Karnataka.
The announcement of development of high-speed rail corridors between Bengaluru-Hyderabad and Bengaluru-Chennai in the Union Budget is welcomed. However, there are no projects for North Karnataka and this continues to be neglected. The youth feel betrayed because there is no clarity about job creation, she said.
Minister Satish Jarkiholi said the budget did not do much for farmers, youth, women, the poor and the poor.
“So far, the Union government has failed to keep its earlier budget promises like releasing the already announced ₹5,300 crore for the Bhadra overhead irrigation project. The budget is silent on the demand for a release of ₹11,495 crore recommended by the Finance Commission for Karnataka. The middle class is on the mend as there is no further tax cut and railway projects, we expect a tax hike,” he said.
The Students’ Federation of India called the Budget anti-student.
“We have demanded that the central government allocate 10% of the total budget for education, as recommended by the Kothari Commission report. However, the expenditure in the current budget is only 6.22%,” it said.
“We feel that the failure to curb FDI in the education sector is a very dangerous development. The budget does not address the concerns of activists and scholars about the new national education policy. However, we welcome the announcement to set up girls’ hostels in all 700 districts of the country,” SFI chief S. Basavaraj said.
“The central government has failed to formulate a master plan to provide higher education to those deprived of it due to economic and social background. This budget has not paid attention to the development of government schools, colleges and universities. There is no clear plan for job creation,” he said.
Published – 01 Feb 2026 21:20 IST