Interests of poor have been at center of every budget: PM Modi at BJP parliamentary meet

The Prime Minister attended the party meeting at the national capital. Discussion on crucial issues, including the recently passed Union Budget 2023-24 is likely to take place in the meeting.

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that the interests of the poor have been at the center of every budget of the BJP government. He was speaking at the BJP parliamentary meeting held on Tuesday. No one is calling it a "chunavi budget" (budget influenced by polls) even though it was the last full-fledged one before the next Lok Sabha polls, he added. Overall development and the interests of every section of society have driven its proposals, he said.

Even those who have been ideologically opposed to the BJP have welcomed the budget, Union minister Pralhad Joshi told reporters quoting Modi's speech to the MPs. The prime minister also asked the MPs, especially those from cities, to organise sports meets, noting that there is a view that the youth there are not much involved in sports. Foreign guests visiting India for various G20 meetings have appreciated the way the country has organised them, he added.

BJP national president JP Nadda felicitated Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the Union Budget 2023 at the meeting as well. The weekly meeting of the BJP in the Parliament takes place every Tuesday when the House is in function.

Discussion on crucial issues, including the recently passed Union Budget 2023-24 is likely to take place in this meeting. The budget session of Parliament started on January 31 this year with the joint Address by President Droupadi Murmu. Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Budget 2023-24 on February 1.

Since then there has been no business in Parliament because of the continued logjam over the Adani issue. The Opposition has demanded that the government should come up and respond in Parliament about the Adani stock issue following which disruption has been witnessed in both Houses. Opposition parties are demanding a joint parliamentary committee probe into the allegations of stock manipulation against the Adani Group. The first half of the Budget session will continue till February 13 and the second half will be held from March 13 to April 6.

In the last BJP parliamentary party meeting held in December, all MPs from the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) along with their spouses were invited to a dinner at the Delhi Gymkhana club in the national capital. Personalized invitation letters were sent to all MPs and CR Paatil personally made calls to these MPs to attend the evening dinner.

The top brass of the BJP including Prime Minister Narendra Modi attended the dinner. Keeping the scale of the Gujarat victory in mind, the menu for the evening was a combination of Gujarati as well as north Indian dishes. The celebration came exactly a week after Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke about the Gujarat win and the contribution of the organisation under CR Paatil in Gujarat.

In that meeting, the Prime Minister had said that if any MP, MLA or worker follows the dedication in the footsteps of Paatil, then electoral success was guaranteed. A standing ovation was given to CR Paatil congratulating him for the BJP's stupendous win. (With Agency inputs)