New Delhi: While the Election Commission has barred the BJP-led Central government from making Delhi-specific announcements in the Union Budget, the income tax relief for the middle class is seen by many as a possible game-changer in the February 5 Assembly polls.Presenting the Union Budget 2025-26, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that no income tax would be payable up to income of Rs 12 lakh annually, a move that is aimed at giving a big relief to the middle class.”I am now happy to announce that there will be no income tax payable up to income of Rs 12 lakh (i.e. average income of Rs 1 lakh per month other than special rate income such as capital gains) under the new regime,” the finance minister said.Delhi has 40 lakh income tax payers. With the Modi government’s announcement in the Budget 2025-26, the BJP will try to win over the middle-class vote, which has been a crucial demographic in Delhi elections.BJP leaders termed the relief a big boost for the middle class, asserting it will strengthen the party’s support among the middle class in the national capital.Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva said this is an important announcement that will deepen the confidence of the middle class in the BJP.”We have already made several announcements for the middle class in our budget, and we will continue to do more for them in the future. The income tax relief for those with an annual income of Rs 12 lakh will have a significant impact on the upcoming Delhi Assembly polls.”There is a large number of taxpayers in Delhi who will benefit, and this is a budgetary gift to the middle class,” Sachdeva told PTI.Delhi goes to polls on February 5 with results to be declared on February 8. The BJP, which has been out of power since 1998, is making concerted efforts to dethrone the Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party which has been ruling Delhi since 2015.Another BJP leader Vijender Gupta, who is contesting from the Rohini seat, said a large number of middle-class people in Delhi will directly benefit from the move, boosting their purchasing power and driving market growth.”It shows the BJP cares for the needs of the middle class and is going to be supported in a big way in the elections,” Gupta told PTI.On January 22, former Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, whose Aam Aadmi Party is making all-out efforts to retain its stronghold for a third consecutive term, released a seven-point “manifesto” for the country’s middle class, saying they have been neglected by successive governments and are a victim of “tax terrorism”.In the past, Kejriwal said that Delhiites have been paying over Rs 1.78 lakh crore in income tax, but they don’t get back much in shares of central taxes.Subham Gupta, a resident of Delhi’s Burari, welcomed the Central government’s announcement, saying it will benefit a large number of middle-class families. Another resident, Surendra Arora, said the government should have also provided relief to those earning up to Rs 15 lakh.”In the budget, the government should have given some relief to those earning up to Rs 15 lakh. People earning more than Rs 12 lakh will end up paying higher taxes,” Arora said.Last month, the Election Commission had directed the Central government to refrain from announcing any Delhi-specific schemes or initiatives in the Union Budget, citing enforcement of the Model Code of Conduct ahead of the Delhi Assembly polls.Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi lauded the Union Budget, presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, as a “people’s budget” that puts more money in the hands of people and said it is a force-multiplier that will increase investments and lead to growth.According to the government, individuals earning up to Rs 12 lakh annually will not have to pay any income tax under the new tax regime.For salaried employees, this nil tax limit will be Rs 12.75 lakh per annum, after taking into account a standard deduction of Rs 75,000. Higher exemptions and rejigs have been effected under the new income tax regime. Meanwhile, describing the budget as underwhelming, Congress senior leader Shashi Tharoor slammed the BJP-led centre for its “short-term thinking” in targeting the voters of Delhi and Bihar, and asserted that a far more visionary approach was needed to take the country out of the morass into which it might be sinking.In an interview to PTI at the news agency’s headquarters here, Tharoor said he did not even hear the words “unemployment” and “inflation” from Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman during her budget speech.
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