P.WILSON MP Speech on Finance Bill 2026 Thank you, Vice Chairman sir. This government came to power promising “Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas” What we have today a regime of “Sabka Bojh, Sirf Unka Vikas” – which means  burden on the many, the benefits for the chosen few

P.WILSON MP Speech on Finance Bill 2026

Thank you, Vice Chairman sir.

This government came to power promising “Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas” What we have today a regime of “Sabka Bojh, Sirf Unka Vikas” – which means  burden on the many, the benefits for the chosen few

This Government functioning with slogans and budget is equally full of  slogans.

Let me demonstrate  with unemployment which is styled as Yuvasakthi driven budget.

India today is facing an unemployment crisis. What is more shocking is that 83% of our unemployed population is youth according to the India Employment Report 2024 jointly published by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and the Institute of Human Development (IHD). A 2026 report titled state of working India finds that graduate unemployment among the age group up to 29 year old remains high – nearly 40%.

Vice Chairman Sir that means four out of every ten educated young Indians are jobless.

And what does this Finance Bill offer them? Slogans like “Yuvashakti”… But slogans do not create jobs. There is no national employment guarantee for urban youth. No enforceable job creation framework. No meaningful protection for gig workers and the unorganised sector, which employs over 90% of India’s workforce. No universal social security.

Vice Chairman Sir, inequality in India has reached unacceptable levels. According to the World Inequality Report 2026, the top 10% capture 58% of national income and hold 65% of total wealth. Meanwhile, the bottom 50% – over 70 crore Indians – are left with just 15% of income and a mere 6% of wealth. Only yesterday I saw a post on social media that Ambani’s wealth increased 500% since 2014 and Adani’s wealth over 1000% but India fell from 52^nd position to 102^nd position in the Global Hunger index. Sir, I am not against Indian businesses and large corporations doing well. In fact, economic growth is driven by growth of Indian industry. But the question is income inequality and the government’s apathy towards the middle and lower economic classes of society.

So what does this Finance Bill do to address income inequality and help those in dire need? Nothing. Does it tax the super-rich? Does it introduce a wealth tax? An inheritance tax? Does it even attempt redistribution? No. Instead, it hands out concessions to corporations – Minimum Alternate Tax reduced to 14%, SEZ tax holidays extended to 20 years, safe harbour margins for data centres fixed at 15%, and massive incentives for capital-intensive sectors like semiconductors, rare earths, and electronics – sectors dominated by a handful of corporate giants.

In fact, welfare expenditure has been slashed by ₹59,456 crores compared to last year. The Gender Budget alone has been cut by ₹51,144 crore. Schemes that sustain the poor- MGNREGA, PMAY, PMJAY, PM POSHAN, crop insurance – are all being short changed. Sir the only welfare economics that comes to the mind of the Union Government is direct cash

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transfer in BJP headed and electoral alliance parties ruled States heading for election. That also only before election. After election, there is no thought of achieving a universal basic income.

Fertiliser subsidies are down. Food subsidies are reduced. Fuel support is shrinking. You are taking away the lifeline of the poor to fatten the balance sheets of billionaires.

What steps are taken for addressing the LPG scarcity ?

India is today one of the largest consumers of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) in the world, with annual consumption of approximately 31 million tonnes. But our national storage capacity barely covers three to four weeks of consumption, and strategic reserves are extremely limited. Nearly 60–67% of our LPG is imported, mostly from West Asia through the Strait of Hormuz, making India highly vulnerable to geopolitical disruptions.

This is largely because the government has failed to diversify energy sources efficiently. The government has also been slow in building the necessary natural gas infrastructure, such as pipelines and terminals, which has hindered the goal of a “gas-based economy”. For example, the Kochi LNG terminal has been under utilized for years. Recently the Government has also announced that those with PNG access but have not availed it will be cut off from LPG. Sir this is highly draconian. There may be many reasons including high costs and technical feasibility for not switching over. We must encourage and allow these transitions gently and over a period of time – not forced and immediate.

Is there any provision in budget to address this west Asia global tensions?

For Middle class, there is no structural tax relief. There is no encouragement for their savings or frank disclosure of  income. Instead, what we see is a dangerous expansion of powers – tax authorities can now reopen past assessments without any limitation, even in a closed cases. This is tax terrorism with legal backing.Sir, in my speech on the budget proposal, I highlighted how there is no relief from the relentless red tape in the tax administration. Nothing has been done in the Bill to provide relief from that.

Sir, still there is no legal guarantee of MSP for farmers, no comprehensive agricultural reform addressing debt, climate risks, or price instability. Farmers continue to suffer, suicides continue, and the government looks away.

Sir, I want to take this opportunity to highlight a growing trend of monopolies in key sectors like defence, energy, ports and airports. This is against national interest. I also want to highlight that in the last few years, the Government of India had issued a directive to all coal based thermal plants to procure coal on pass through basis in suppression of the terms of the Power Purchase Agreements. This has seen skyrocketing of price of electricity purchased by discoms which is ultimately passed on to the customers. I hope the Government takes a complete audit of the financial distress caused by these pass through directions issued under section 11 of the Electricity Act and comes up with a plan to counter high cost of imported coal in the future without issuing ad hoc directions like this.

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The government claims fiscal prudence with a 4.3% fiscal deficit target. But this cannot be achieved by cutting welfare, squeezing subsidies, and shifting the burden onto the poor.

Meanwhile, India’s debt-to-GDP stands at 55.6%, and interest payments consume nearly 20% of total expenditure. Gross tax revenue growth is a modest 8%. GST collections are stagnating. Consumption demand is weakening. Even UPI growth is slowing – clear signals of an economy losing momentum.

We see tax holidays for IFSC units extended to 20 years, duty exemptions for critical minerals, incentives for data centres, and an Infrastructure Risk Guarantee Fund – a mechanism where profits are privatised, and risks are socialised.

This is crony capitalism at its worst.

Chairman Sir, the government may speak of 3.2% inflation, but I request the Hon’ble Finance Minister to step outside this House.

But I request Hon’ble Finance Minister to look outside this House, the real India:

A engineering graduate drives a cab.

A farmer borrows for seeds.

A small business shuts down quietly.

A family cuts protein from its diet.

Graduates are jobless.

Growth is being announced. But where is the result.

You promised, Two  crore jobs will be created every year, it’s been 12 years, where are the 24 crore jobs created.

You promised doubling farmers, where is the income.

Ask any family about actual food prices, fuel costs, school fees, costs of transport. They are struggling to make ends meet. The real inflation in the hands of the people of this country is around 10–15%.

Now, Lets come to the TAX BURDEN

Direct taxes grow by 11.4%.

Indirect taxes grow by 3%.

Indirect taxes are paid by common people when they buy: soap, buy groceries, buy clothes,  recharge mobile, buy school notebooks and all other essential commodities.

In Dr. B.R. Ambedkar words –“Indirect taxation falls upon the poor man whether he can afford it or not.”

A billionaire pays GST. A construction worker pays GST.

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Same tax. Same rate. But the pain is different.

The rich feel taxation in spreadsheets. The poor feel taxation in groceries.

A middle-class mother does not track fiscal deficit. She tracks the price of Rice and Onion.

This Budget shows that the Union Government has failed to fix a tax system that hits the poor the hardest. Tax collections are growing very slowly, but there is still no clear plan to stop tax evasion or bring more people into the tax net.

Sir, I also want to highlight the paltry sums allotted to the Ministry of Law and Justice. Sir we stand at the precipice of an AI revolution in the legal profession. At this stage, we should be talking about modernising courts and providing access to cutting edge technology to judges to ease their burden and improve decision making. But the stark reality is that across India, district judiciary and in some States even High Courts are struggling with basic infrastructure like computers, toilets etc. I have visited many high courts across the country. But their infrastructure is very poor.  Sir, allocating funds to the judiciary will also contribute to the growth of the economy. When commercial cases are assured of a speedy disposal, the confidence in the Indian industry is boosted. When long standing property disputes are decided, the asset can be utilised for monetisation. Therefore, I urge the Hon’ble Finance Minister to address the needs of the judiciary, particularly on infrastructure. Similarly, I have been speaking many times on the need to increase the salaries of Judges of Supreme Court and High Court. The salaries that are being paid now is not commensurate with the work they do. We need to give our judges financial security. Retirement age of Judges of Supreme Court should be increased to 70 years and the retirement pension of judges of High Court and Supreme Court should be equal to their salary last drawn and the retiring Judges should be used only for all the government works and ban their employment in tribunals.

Sir, Incomes of middle class people are stagnating. Savings are shrinking. Aspirations are collapsing. And yet, we are told this is a success story. But under your government, the rich becomes richer.

Sir, This very government has the audacity to lecture States on “fiscal discipline” while its own fiscal house is in complete disorder. The numbers expose the truth. The Union’s debt-to-GDP ratio stands at a staggering 55.6% – more than double that of Tamil Nadu’s disciplined 26.12%. And yet, it is the Centre that claims to be the guardian of prudence!

Let us look deeper into this so-called “fiscal management.” Of every rupee the Union Government earns, nearly 38% is swallowed by interest payments alone. That is ₹14.04 lakh crore is paid as interests – an astronomical sum that vanishes before a single rupee is spent on development, healthcare, education, or job creation.

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To my Parliament question, the ministry has revealed that outstanding debt of the Union Government has grown sharply in recent years. The total debt stood at ₹156.13 lakh crore in 2022-23, increased to ₹171.70 lakh crore in 2023-24, rose further to ₹185.95 lakh crore in 2024-25, and is estimated to reach ₹200.53 lakh crore in 2025-26, with a budget estimate of ₹218.63 lakh crore in 2026-27. This means that in just 4 years, the Union Government’s debt has expanded by over ₹62 lakh crore, representing an increase of around 40% since 2022-23.

While the Union Government repeatedly lectures States on fiscal prudence and financial discipline, its own debt trajectory shows a steep, continuous rise, raising serious questions about the sustainability of the Centre’s fiscal management.

The reply also exposes a deeply troubling imbalance in India’s fiscal federal structure, particularly in the treatment of Tamil Nadu. The Union Govt collected ₹1,75,088 crore from Tamil Nadu in 2022-23, ₹2,07,314 crore in 2023-24, and ₹2,17,165 crore in 2024-25, totalling ₹5,99,567 crore in tax revenues from the State over three years.

However, the funds devolved to Tamil Nadu from the share of Central taxes during the same period were ₹38,731 crore in 2022-23, ₹46,072 crore in 2023-24, and ₹52,492 crore in 2024-25, totalling ₹1,37,295 crore.  For example, for every ₹1 of tax revenue collected by the Union Government from Tamil Nadu, the State receives only about ₹0.23 in its share of Central divisible pool of taxes.

This is nothing short of fiscal injustice. A comparison with other States reveals the magnitude of this imbalance. For example, Uttar Pradesh contributed ₹3,62,457 crore in taxes to the Union Government over the same three-year period. Yet, the funds devolved to Uttar Pradesh from Central taxes amounted to ₹6,03,220 crore.

This means that for every ₹1 of tax revenue collected by the Union Govt from Uttar Pradesh, it receives approximately ₹1.66 back from the share of Central taxes.

The disparity becomes even more striking in the case of Bihar. The taxes collected from Bihar during these three years totalled ₹49,215 crore, while the funds devolved to the State from Central taxes amounted to ₹3,38,549 crore.

In effect, for every ₹1 of tax revenue collected by the Union Government  from Bihar, it receives nearly ₹6.9 back from the share of Central taxes.

Tamil Nadu, one of India’s strongest economic contributors and a major generator of national tax revenues, receives only a fraction of what it contributes. Meanwhile, several States that contribute far less receive significantly larger transfers.The people of TN deserve a fair and equitable share of the resources they help generate. If the principle of cooperative federalism is to have any real meaning, the Union Government must address this glaring disparity and

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ensure that the distribution of national resources does not systematically disadvantage high-performing States like Tamil Nadu or penalise them for the same.

If the Union Govt truly believes in cooperative federalism, it must answer a simple question: Why is Tamil Nadu paying ₹1 and getting back only 23 paise from central divisible pool of shares? At the same time, other States receive ₹1.66 or even ₹6.9 for every rupee contributed?

Tamil Nadu has demonstrated that fiscal discipline is not about cutting welfare – it is about managing resources intelligently and prioritising people.

But what does the Centre do? It withholds our rightful funds, cuts devolution, delays dues, and then turns around to preach fiscal morality. All this while its own debt continues to balloon and its interest burden tightens like a noose around its budget.

Several crucial central scheme funds owed to Tamil Nadu remain pending. According to detailed representations made by the Tamil Nadu government, the Union Government owes more than ₹10,000 crore across various schemes.

Take the Jal Jeevan Mission.

The Union Government has released only ₹5,914 crore, leaving ₹3,112 crore still pending.

Madam when ever you deny our lawful dues and give pinpricks through Governor, one slogan our leader Mr MK Stalin always say to our people is “Tamilnadu poradum Tamilnadu Vellum”

Several funds remain only on paper, take for example urban Scheme fund announced in budget, but till today we have not received anything.

You may control the narrative today. You may withhold our lawful funds amounting more than Rs 10,000 crore, twist data, and preach fiscal sermons from Delhi. But there is one force you cannot control – the people.

The people of Tamil Nadu are watching.

 Madam you have given nothing to Tamil Nadu for last 5 years and made them struggle.

Mark my words.

 The people of Tamil Nadu will reciprocate in the same way you did on 23^rd April and you will know the results on May 4^th When the people of Tamil Nadu deliver their judgment against you.

The people of Tamilnadu knows only one slogan madam

“Stalin Thodarattum, Tamil Nadu Vellattum!”