Leaders unhappy Far from reality: BNP Undesirable: Jamaat

Staff Reporter :

Political leaders expressed their unhappiness over the proposed budget for the fiscal year 2025-26.

BNP Standing Committee Member Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury said does not reflect the realities of the country’s economic conditions.
Besides, Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami said it is not as per the people’s desire.

Speaking at a press conference at a hotel in Dhaka on Monday BNP Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury said the budget does not reflect the realities of the country’s economic conditions.

The BNP leader argued that the budget’s size and structure have no clear alignment with revenue generation.

“If the government takes loans from banks, it hampers investment in the private sector. The entire revenue income will be consumed by operational expenses,” he said.

Expressing dissatisfaction with the fundamental aspects of the budget, he said, “We see no qualitative improvement, and the structure remains the same as before.”

He emphasised that the budget should have been proportionate to revenue income.

“But that hasn’t happened. The entire revenue will go toward operating costs, which means the development budget will be reliant on loans – both domestic and foreign – ultimately harming the economy.”

Khasru, a former Commerce Minister, said relying on revenue-based budgeting would have ensured liquidity in the private sector, boosted investment, lowered interest rates, and reduced dependency on foreign loans. “But we have failed to move in that direction. The core mistakes remain.”

The senior BNP leader said also the current foreign debt stands at around $3.8 billion and warned that the size of the budget should have been smaller, considering revenue constraints.

When contacted, Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami Publicity Secretary Advoacte Matiur Rahman Akando on Monday told The New Nation, the proposed budget does not reflect the desire of the common people as it has not showed any clear directives on the economic reform initiatives.”

“This interim government has started reform work. We hoped that this budget will be focused on the economic reform initiatives. But it has failed to do so,” the Jamaat leader said.

He also expressed his disappointment over little tax free income limit saying it should ceiling to 4.5 lak taka for tax free earning limits.