Focusing solely on the middle class and high-income groups will inevitably lead to increased inequality

By reducing the intake from the wealthy and failing to transfer it to the poor, the budget disconnects from the principle of welfare state.

With the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP)-led government unveiling its fiscal blueprint for the upcoming year, the declarations of economic transformation are meeting with scepticism. Observers and planning experts note that behind the budget’s rhetoric lies a structural realignment—one that explicitly shifts focus away from traditional poverty alleviation toward an aggressive, tax-incentivised expansion of the middle class and the information technology sector. Critics argue this trajectory risks widening the country’s socio-economic cleavages and relies heavily on unproven economic assumptions.