New Delhi: Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented her ninth consecutive budget in the Lok Sabha on Sunday. This time, the Finance Minister’s budget speech did not include any references to poetry or saints. Her speech focused entirely on investment and development, and there was no direct mention of the states going to elections.
It is worth noting that in all the budgets presented by Nirmala Sitharaman previously, she had quoted a poem by some poet. Even before Nirmala Sitharaman, Finance Ministers have recited poetry during their budget presentations. If you want to know which poem or couplet Nirmala Sitharaman or other Finance Ministers used and when, click on the link below.
Why do Finance Ministers read poetry and quotes from the Mahabharata and Gita while presenting the budget? What is the role of poetry and couplets amidst the juggling of figures?
‘Har Har Mahadev’ slogans raised
As Prime Minister Modi entered the House, members of the ruling party raised slogans of ‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai’ and ‘Har Har Mahadev’. Opposition members, on the other hand, raised slogans of ‘Jai Samvidhan’ (Victory to the Constitution). After the budget presentation, the Prime Minister and other ministers congratulated Nirmala Sitharaman.
Finance Minister wore a Kanjeevaram saree
The Union Finance Minister, on Sunday, paid tribute to the traditional weaving of her home state of Tamil Nadu, where assembly elections are to be held this year, by wearing a purple Kanjeevaram saree with golden checks and a coffee brown border. Prime Minister Narendra Modi described Sitharaman’s approximately 85-minute budget speech as ‘historic and forward-looking’. The speech began with a tribute to Guru Ravidas and a mention of Magh Purnima. Uproar by Kerala members
At the end of the speech, Congress members from Kerala created a ruckus. They claimed that the Finance Minister had ignored their state, where elections are due in April. Responding to them, Sitharaman said: “Under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi, our government has decisively and consistently chosen action over uncertainty, reform over rhetoric, and people over populism.” First Budget Prepared in ‘Kartavya Bhavan’
This was the first budget prepared in the Finance Ministry’s new office, ‘Kartavya Bhavan’ (formerly North Block). Before the House proceedings began, MPs were seen greeting each other. BJP MP Rajkumar Chahar was seen taking selfies with other MPs, while DMK leader Kanimozhi was seen having a brief conversation with Home Minister Amit Shah and External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar. Before the proceedings commenced, some BJP leaders and Union Ministers were seen standing around Home Minister Shah and discussing matters with him.
Condolences Offered to Supriya Sule
Several members approached Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) MP Supriya Sule to offer their condolences on the death of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar. Ajit Pawar died in a plane crash on January 28. Supriya is his cousin. Several leaders, including Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Akhilesh Yadav, Tariq Anwar, and Misa Bharti, were seen approaching Sule and speaking with her.
