Rastriya Prajatantra Party MP Khushbu Oli Criticizes Budget for Creating Despair in Capital Market and Private Sector

Kathmandu. Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP) MP Khushbu Oli has claimed that the budget and economic bill for the upcoming fiscal year brought by the government have created despair in the capital market and the private sector. Participating in the discussion on the economic bill in the House of Representatives on Friday, MP Oli drew the government's serious attention to the sharp decline in the stock market immediately after the budget was released.

MP Oli questioned Finance Minister Swarnim Wagle's confidence, asking why the stock market has been declining since the day the budget statement was presented. She argued that while a budget should normally give a positive signal to the market, in the context of Nepal, the exact opposite effect has been seen. She commented that the finance minister's confidence is based on reality or is it illusory, and that no one from the private sector, industrialists, or investors is excited.

Commenting on the new tax rates included in the bill, MP Oli expressed concern that the 'equality fee' added in the name of education and health will only increase the burden on the public. She stated that even though a mechanism for collecting taxes has been created, there is no guarantee that it will improve the quality of government schools and hospitals.

She said, "The problem is not just in the tax rates, but in our structural framework itself, which this bill has failed to address." MP Oli also strongly objected to the extensive authority given to the government by Section 18 of the Economic Bill to arbitrarily change tax rates. She claimed that such discretionary power will lead to policy instability and increase the influence of vested interests.

She warned that setting tax policy outside the control of parliament will raise questions about transparency and drag the Ministry of Finance into controversy. During her address, she directly questioned Prime Minister Balen Shah, asking who exactly is excited by this budget and economic bill.

She accused the budget of failing to bring concrete plans in important areas such as agricultural productivity, industrialization, and job creation.