After Nirmala Sitharaman's Budget Speech, Congress's Election Manifesto "Plagiarism" Swipe

Congress party leaders have alleged Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman plagiarised the apprenticeship scheme from the party's general election manifesto. The opposition party's chief Mallikarjun Kharge has called it a "nakalchi (copy-paste) Budget".

Ms Sitharaman in her Union Budget speech today announced an internship scheme under which first-time employees in the formal sector would get one-month salary, and job-seekers will get Internship in 500 top companies.

"As the fifth scheme under the Prime Minister's package, our government will launch a comprehensive scheme for providing internship opportunities in 500 top companies to one crore youth in five years. They will gain exposure for 12 months to real-life business environments, varied professions and employment opportunities," Ms Sitharaman said in the first Budget of Modi 3.0.

An internship allowance of Rs 5,000 per month along with a one-time assistance of Rs 6,000 will be given, she said, adding companies will be expected to bear the training cost and 10 per cent of the internship cost from their corporate social responsibility (CSR) funds,

Taking a swipe at the announcement, Congress leader and former Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram in a post on X said he wished the Finance Minister "had copied some other ideas from the Congress manifesto."

"I am glad to know that the Hon'ble FM has read the Congress Manifesto LS 2024 after the election results. I am happy she has virtually adopted the Employment-linked incentive (ELI) outlined on page 30 of the Congress Manifesto," Mr Chidambaram.

"I am also happy that she has introduced the Apprenticeship scheme along with an allowance to every apprentice spelt out on page 11 of the Congress Manifesto. I wish the FM had copied some other ideas in the Congress Manifesto. I shall shortly list the missed opportunities," he said.

Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge said Ms Sitharaman has taken a leaf out of the Congress's Nyay Patra 2024, with the Centre's internship programme clearly modelled on the Congress's proposed apprenticeship programme that was called 'Pehli Naukri Pakki'. He said it was a "nakalchi Budget".