The Awami League, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and the Communist Party of Bangladesh (CPB) as well as trade bodies and the anti-corruption watchdogs have expressed displeasure with the proposed budget for the 2025-26 fiscal year.
Terming it anti-poor, they say the budget provides benefits for the upper-class people.
Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) has strongly condemned the decision to reinstate the opportunity to whiten black money at higher tax rates.
It is โunethical, discriminatory, and unconstitutional,โ TIB Executive Director Dr Iftekharuzzaman said.
The government is taking a position contrary to the core objectives of reforming the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC). This policy violates Article 20(2) of the Constitution, which declares unearned income illegal.
He pointed out that this provision is also discriminatory, as it allows illegal money holders to dominate the housing sector and deprives honest earners of ownership opportunities. He warned that such decisions would encourage corruption by promising legalisation of illegal assets at the end of the fiscal year.
The TIB called for the immediate withdrawal of this corruption-friendly provision and demanded an investigation into the sources of black money, ensuring accountability and equality in the tax system.
Dr Iftekhar expressed disappointment that there was no update in the budget on recovering funds laundered abroad. Although the budget proposes taxes and penalties on those who launder money and later renounce Bangladeshi citizenship, it fails to clarify how such measures will be implemented.
The BNP sees no qualitative change in the budget, Standing Committee Member and former Commerce Minister Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury said.
He added that the budget follows the same pattern as previous ones, with minor numerical changes. He questioned the feasibility of implementation, especially given the countryโs foreign debt of approximately $3.5 billion. He opined that the budget should have been smaller in size.
The CPB called the budget โtraditionalโ and โrecessionaryโ without any surprise elements.
In a statement, CPB President Mohammad Shah Alam and General Secretary Ruhin Hossain Prince said the interim government, being unelected, lacked scope for structural changes yet failed to offer any visionary reforms.
They claimed that the budget prioritises austerity and IMF-driven belt-tightening instead of productive expenditure.
The CPB also warned of declining growth, rising unemployment, and increasing poverty, stating that the 6% growth target is unrealistic and might fall to 3% as per World Bank projections. The budget offers nothing to lower- or middle-class or farmers, they added.
AL questions Yunusโ authority
The Awami League has rejected the budget proposals for the 2025-26 fiscal year, terming it cowardly, and questioned the jurisdiction of the interim government as it goes beyond keeping track of daily income and expenditure to imposing VAT and declaring a budget.
The budget has completely deviated from the obligation of a state to meet the needs of the people, while the political morality mandated by the constitution is also absent from it, the party said in a statement on Monday.
โThis is a closed-door technocratic process, which is contrary to the concept of democratic Bangladesh.โ
This budget has been prepared without the input of the political parties, civil society, economists, professional organisations, and the working people, the Awami League said. This is not a pro-people budget but provides facilities and benefits to the upper class.
The finance adviser declaring that it is not a growth-centric budget is a fraudulence. Formulating the budget without setting a growth target is like walking towards a destination without a target. Lack of commitment is a major feature of this government, the statement said.
โThe budget has set a target of 5.5%, which is much lower than the average growth achieved during the Awami League period. However, this time, the growth rate has fallen below 4%, whereas if it were normal growth, the growth rate should have been more than 7%.
โEven though the target is low, the government is attacking growth because there is no commitment to achieve it. However, critics say that they want to lower the growth figure to hide major looting and corruption. Because in the current economy built by the hard work and sweat of the common people of Bangladesh, normal growth should be higher.โ
The Awami League also slammed the Yunus-led government for making false statements to tarnish the development and economic success during its tenure.
โThe economic success of the Awami League government is unprecedented in the history of Bangladesh. The people of the country are witnesses to continuous growth, improvement in the quality of life, and unprecedented progress in infrastructure development.
โThe world used to call Bangladesh under Sheikh Hasina a โgrowth miracleโ.โ
Dhaka Chamber: Budget not business-friendly
Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI) President Taskeen Ahmed stated that priority must be given to lowering interest rates on bank loans. He also highlighted a negative aspect of the budget โ its overreliance on the banking sector to cover the budget deficit.
The budget lacks specific directives to boost business momentum. Although some measures have been proposed to curb inflation, operational costs for businesses will increase, which may slow down the overall economy.
Moreover, the target of collecting more loans from the financial sector could lead to a decrease in the flow of loans to the private sector. He also criticized the imposition of a 2% advance income tax on previously tax-exempt imported goods, stating that it would reduce the working capital for businesses.
Regarding personal income tax, he noted that the 5% tax rate on the initial income slab has been removed, which will negatively affect around 50% of middle-income households next fiscal year. He urged a reconsideration of the decision to raise the turnover tax from 0.6% to 1%.
Taskeen also mentioned that raising import duties on automobile spare parts from 10% to 25% will increase the local production costs in that sector. While internet usage costs have decreased, the hike in VAT on locally manufactured mobile phones will hamper the growth of that industry.
He acknowledged that some tax reductions on LNG and raw material imports might help reduce inflation in the coming months. However, he pointed out that the budget does not include substantial steps to attract domestic and foreign investments.
Speaking about the SME sector โ which employs over 50% of the total workforce and involves more than 8 million people โ he noted the absence of a specific roadmap in the budget.
On startups, Taskeen welcomed the Tk100 crore fund allocation but criticized the increase in tax on online transactions from 5% to 15%, saying it would negatively impact online businesses.
Education sector criticism
The proposed budget has reduced the allocation to the education and technology sector as a percentage of GDP, which education experts labeled as disappointing.
Professor Abdul Halim, former chairman of Dhaka Universityโs Institute of Education and Research, said the budget does not reflect the aspirations of the July uprising, which called for prioritizing education. He noted that quality improvement is impossible without sufficient financing.
CPD Research Director Khondaker Golam Moazzem said that although the allocation increased in absolute terms by Tk 934 crore, it is still unsatisfactory. The sharp drop in the primary education budget is particularly disappointing. He attributed the underwhelming allocation to shortfalls in revenue collection.
Pharma sector welcomes support
The budget proposes further exemption of duties and taxes on the import of raw materials for the pharmaceutical industry. It also reduces tariffs on equipment for hospitals with over 50 beds.
Dr Md Zakir Hossain, secretary general of the Bangladesh Association of Pharmaceutical Industries, said that this would greatly benefit patients, especially those with cancer. Locally produced cancer drugs are significantly cheaperโabout 25โ30% of the international cost.
With this tax benefit, local manufacturers will be better positioned to compete with multinational companies, he added.
OTT sector ignored
Filmmaker, screenwriter and actor Ashfaque Nipun questioned whether the finance adviser had any idea or updated data on how many direct OTT subscribers there are in Bangladesh.
He criticised the proposal for an additional 10% supplementary tax on the OTT sector, which began its journey five years ago, since it will directly impact creatorsโ budgets and storytelling. It will also hinder legal subscriber acquisition. Piracy will increase further, and in the end, everyoneโs business will shrink.
He added that a significant portion of OTT viewers in the country watch our content through piracy and there is a collective failure in combating piracy.
He also mentioned that the developing industries around the world are usually given tax exemptions.
Ashfaque Nipun did not shy away from criticizing the government for increasing taxes without addressing piracy.
He wrote: โInstead of taking a strong stance against piracy, this extra tax will actually encourage it. Without reforming the overall structure, imposing additional taxes might extinguish the little light of hope that occasionally appears for our content to grow globally. It’s unfortunate!โ
Adnan Al Rajeev, who recently received special recognition at the Cannes Film Festival for his short film Ali, also protested the 10% tax imposed on OTT platforms.
He said: โIt is the government’s job to support and stand beside the entertainment industry. But what I see is that the industry is being suppressedโand thatโs truly heartbreaking. This is why so many artists leave the country and settle abroad.โ
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