Patna,(BiharTimes): Former railway minister Lalu Prasad and Bihar chief minister Jitan Ram Manjhi have strongly criticized the first railway budget of the Narendra Modi government presented by the railway minister Sadanand Gowda in Lok Sabha on Tuesday.

Reacting to the budget Lalu said that Narendra Modi has conspired with the big industrialists to privatize the Indian Railways. “This is not going to work. Where will 14 lakh employees go,” he asked.
Coming down heavily on Modi he said that the new budget very cunningly said that there would be no hike in fare. The truth is that it has already been increased only a few days back. This is dishonesty. Prices of all consumer items would go up after this hike in rail fare and freight rate, he claimed.

He said whenever BJP comes to power it helps corporate houses and added that the FDI would not come in the loss-making sector. Foreign companies want to earn and would invest in the sector where there is prospect of earning profit.

Brushing aside all talks of PPP he said all these things have been experimented and is not going to click. The Modi government is only trying to bluff the people of the country to benefit the big corporate bosses who have helped him in the election.

Lalu said outsider would come and invest only to earn and give nothing. Where is the money? he asked.

Lalu feared that by the next budget the Modi government would announce the privatization of Indian Railways. He asked the journalists not to mislead the nation by talking about FDI, PPP etc.

Meanwhile, chief minister Jitan Ram Manjhi regretted that Bihar had got nothing in this budget. “I had already express my fear about this on Monday and I have been proved right,” he said.