Citizens not in favour of a populist budget: Giriraj Singh

AHMEDABAD: Union Minister Giriraj Singh today said citizens are not in favour of a 'populist' budget.

When asked about Finance Minister Arun Jaitley's indication that this year's general budget won't be a populist one, Singh, Minister of State for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises( MSME), alleged that the Congress used to bring such (populists) budgets to get votes.

"Even the country (citizens) is not in favour of a populist budget. Such budgets were presented by Congress-led governments to get votes in the past. Otherwise, budget should be in accordance with our economy. That is what our Finance Minister (Jaitley) hinted at," said Singh, who was here to attend a private function.

"Last time, everyone appreciated the Rail Budget, even though it was not a populist budget. We gave a sustainable Rail Budget. Thus, budget should be in the interest of the country," he added.

Making a case for 8-9 per cent growth rate, Jaitley yesterday indicated that his upcoming Budget will not resort to "sheer populism" for good ratings and will focus on structural reforms.