A weakened Narendra Modi subsidises jobs and doles out pork

Narendra Modi, India’s prime minister, was brimming with confidence when his government unveiled an interim budget in February. With a general election a few weeks away, his ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was widely expected to retain, and possibly expand, its majority in parliament. Such was his sureness of victory that the mini-budget contained few of the welfare handouts and other sops that often precede Indian elections. It focused instead on trimming the fiscal deficit, improving infrastructure and other measures aimed at a long-term goal to make India a developed country by 2047, the centenary of its independence.

A new political reality infused the full budget, unveiled on July 23rd. It was the first since the election result in June, when the BJP lost its majority, forcing it to rely on coalition partners to form a government. That unexpected shift in India’s political landscape—attributed largely to public anger over inflation and inequality—was evident in the budget in several ways.