Surat, Feb 19 (PTI) Gujarat Bharatiya Janata Party chief CR Paatil on Sunday mocked the Congress saying the opposition party could not find any fault in the Union Budget for 2023-24 and, therefore, was talking about it being presented with an eye on the general elections.

Also Read | TCS Layoffs: India's Largest IT Services Exporter Says Not Considering Job Cuts, Hiring Impacted Employees From Startups.

Hailing the Union Budget, Paatil thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for exempting cooperative sugar factories, situated mostly in south Gujarat, from paying any income tax.

Also Read | Chennai Shocker: Man Kills Wife for Denying Sex, Given Lesser Jail Term by Court Citing 'Sudden Provocation'.

"This budget offers something to each and every class of the society, be it youth, women, farmers or fishermen. The poor and those from the middle class will be benefited immensely," the Navsari Lok Sabha MP said.

"The Congress always opposes provisions of the Union Budget. But this time, they could not find anything to point fingers at. Apart from accusing the Centre of presenting an election-centric budget, the opposition party could not find any other flaw this time," Paatil opined.

Speaking on the civic budget passed here, the BJP leader said Surat was the only city in the country where 10 major projects are underway simultaneously, including the Diamond Bourse and upgradation of Surat railway station.

"Thanks to the Central government grants given to Surat city administration, the project of Tapi river purification has become a reality and is nearing completion. Surat Municipal Corporation will soon get a 30-storey building as its headquarter, which would be a first for any civic body," he said.

The Surat civic budget has not proposed any new tax and has allotted Rs 2,800 crore for development works, he said.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)