At a fiery press conference on Budget 2026, P Chidambaram takes pointed questions on everything from Trump’s “dead economy” jibe to STT, defence, education and rural distress. He dodges bait on Trump and Venezuela oil, but tears into the budget as one “without economic strategy or statesmanship.” From the rare earth corridor and environment fears to cuts in education and sliding defence spend versus UPA years, Chidambaram challenges the government’s narrative.