Largest deficit, deceptive one in history: NCP

The National Citizen Party (NCP) on Friday denounced the government’s proposed budget for fiscal year 2026-27 (FY27) as the “largest deficit budget in Bangladesh’s history,” branding it hollow, rhetoric-driven and deceptive.

Speaking at a press conference in Dhaka, party leaders said the budget was built on political promises rather than any serious reform agenda. 

NCP’s budget formulation committee chief and joint convener Atik Mujahid said the Tk9,38,000 crore outlay – roughly 18% larger than the previous year’s – bore no relation to the country’s economic realities. 

“Following the July uprising, people expected a realistic and reform-oriented budget. But what the government has presented is hollow and deceptive,” he said.

The party had previously prepared a shadow budget following consultations with business leaders, workers, professionals and economic stakeholders, hoping the government would draw on its recommendations. It said the final budget had ignored them entirely.

The NCP was particularly scathing about the revenue target set for the National Board of Revenue, calling it unrealistic and warning that a shortfall running into several hundred thousand crore taka was likely. 

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Atik Mujahid said the government had made numerous promises without explaining how they would be funded, raising the prospect of mid-year revisions or a scaled-back budget.

The party also raised concerns about government reliance on domestic and foreign borrowing to plug the deficit, arguing that with the banking sector still unreformed and many banks facing liquidity shortfalls, heavier state borrowing risked crowding out private investment. 

It further criticised new tax compliance requirements, saying they would deter small entrepreneurs from entering the formal economy.

On the tax-free income threshold, the NCP said it should have been raised to at least Tk4,50,000 annually to reflect inflation and the rising cost of living, and opposed the imposition of source taxes on small and medium-sized businesses.

Speaking separately in Chattogram, National Citizen Party (NCP) Convener and opposition chief whip Nahid Islam said a bigger budget simply meant bigger opportunities for corruption. 

He pointed out that Bangladesh had never collected Tk6,09,000 crore in revenue in its history – last year’s collection barely exceeded Tk3,00,000 crore – making the target impossible to meet in a single year. 

He also criticised the absence of any framework for recovering looted funds or repatriating laundered money. The NCP urged the government to revise the budget during the parliamentary session in consultation with political parties, economists and the public.

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