Opposition political parties on Friday declared the federal budget for the fiscal year 2020-21 anti-people.

Commenting on the federal budget after it was presented to the National Assembly in Islamabad on Friday afternoon, the opposition political parties called upon the government to increase salaries of the government employees. They said the government is going to mortgage the future of the coming generations to foreign banks. They said the government is blaming all the destruction of the economy on the coronavirus pandemic.

Opposition leaders said the federal budget reflects failure of the government led by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI). Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Shehbaz Sharif said the budget is anti-people therefore he rejects it. Shehbaz, who is also Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly, said that inflation and unemployment would increase further in the country after this budget.

PML-N leader Khawaja Muhammad Asif said the government had failed long before the coronavirus outbreak in the country, but it is now blaming all its economic failures on the pandemic.

The Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) declared the 2020-21 budget the worst budget in the history of Pakistan. PPP leader Abdul Qadir Patel said the government did not honour even a single promise from all the promises it made in the last year’s budget speech.

PPP leader Saleem Mandviwalla, who is also deputy chairman of the Senate, said the government must increase salaries of the government employees. PPP leader Syed Naveed Qamar said that government’s decision to not increase salaries and pension of government employees shows callousness of the ruling party.

Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) chief Siraj-ul-Haq said the federal budget reflects failure of the government. He said the federal budget has nothing for the farmers.

Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam leader Asad Mahmood said the government failed in achieving its economic targets.

The opposition political parties continued their protest during the budget speech.