Ashish Kumar Saha, President of the Tripura Pradesh Congress, on Tuesday strongly criticized the state’s proposed 2026-27 budget, labeling it “full of fraud” and accusing the government of manipulating figures to conceal its failures.

He voiced his concerns during a press briefing at the Pradesh Congress Bhavan.

Saha claimed that the state’s budgets since 2018 have been misleading. He noted that the 2025-26 budget had been set at Rs 32,423.44 crore, yet the revised figures showed a deficit of Rs 429.56 crore. Although the government had announced numerous development projects, infrastructure plans, employment programs, and social welfare schemes, Saha alleged that most of these initiatives were never implemented.

Highlighting the state’s dependency on central allocations, Saha said that Tripura had requested Rs 178 lakh crore from the 16th Finance Commission over the past five years to fund infrastructure, employment generation, development of hilly areas, and additional administrative expenses for border states. However, he pointed out that the Finance Commission’s report exposed a large gap between the state’s demands and the funds actually received.

Even before the presentation of the new budget, Tripura had already faced a shortfall of Rs 31 crore under the 12th Finance Commission grants for the ongoing financial year, he added. “Small and economically weaker states like ours rely heavily on central tax shares and allocations to fund essential projects. Shortfalls from the center make it impossible to meet public expectations, including fair wages for teachers and government employees, improvements in education and healthcare, and vital infrastructure development,” Saha stated.

He also criticized the promises made under the central government’s “double engine” model, claiming that, like previous assurances, they have largely been unfulfilled.

According to Saha, the proposed 2026-27 budget totals Rs 34,212.31 crore but carries a deficit of Rs 240.72 crore. Last year, the budget had projected loans of Rs 4,993.73 crore, which later ballooned to Rs 7,961.60 crore. The new budget sets the loan target at Rs 6,905.60 crore, with Rs 2,483.99 crore allocated for repayment of principal and interest.

Saha concluded by asserting that even with minor increases in certain allocations, the budget fails to address major issues such as employment, fair compensation for teachers and employees, or the everyday struggles faced by marginalized communities, including farmers and women.