Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is set to present her eighth consecutive Union Budget on Saturday, continuing the tradition of delivering it digitally via a tablet enclosed in a traditional 'bahi-khata' style pouch.
Sitharaman, India's first full-time woman Finance Minister, broke away from the colonial practice of using a Budget briefcase in July 2019. Instead, she introduced the 'bahi-khata' to carry Budget documents, a tradition she has upheld.
In 2021, during the pandemic, she transitioned to a digital tablet, which remains her preferred method for presenting the Budget.
Dressed in an elegant off-white handloom silk saree adorned with fish-themed embroidery and a golden border, Sitharaman took the customary 'briefcase' photograph outside her North Block office alongside her team before proceeding to meet President Droupadi Murmu.
As a mark of good fortune, President Murmu offered her 'dahi-cheeni' (curd and sugar) before the Budget presentation.
Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary was also present during the meeting, where Sitharaman discussed key aspects of the Budget with the President.
With the red-covered tablet featuring a golden national emblem in hand, Sitharaman will head to Parliament to unveil the Budget for the fiscal year 2025-26.
This marks the 14th consecutive Budget under the Narendra Modi government since 2014, including two interim Budgets presented ahead of the 2019 and 2024 general elections.
Appointed as Finance Minister in 2019 after Modi’s re-election, Sitharaman presented her first Budget on July 5 of that year. She carried the Budget documents in a red cloth folder secured with a string and bearing the national emblem. Before her tenure, finance ministers—including Arun Jaitley and Piyush Goyal—adhered to the tradition of using a Budget briefcase.
The long-standing colonial practice of presenting the Budget at 5 PM was first altered during the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government when Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha moved the timing to 11 AM, a change that has since been maintained by successive governments.
The tradition of the Budget briefcase traces its roots to British governance. The word 'Budget' originates from the French 'bougette,' meaning leather briefcase. The practice began in the 18th century when Britain's Chancellor of the Exchequer was required to 'open the budget' during the annual financial statement.
In 1860, then-British finance chief William E. Gladstone formalized the tradition by using a red briefcase with the Queen’s monogram in gold to carry his speech, a necessity given the length of his statements.
In India, finance ministers have used various briefcases, including red, black, tan, and brown. The first Indian Finance Minister, R.K. Shanmukham Chetty, carried a leather portfolio when presenting the inaugural Budget in 1947.
T.T. Krishnamachari used a file bag in the 1950s, while Jawaharlal Nehru preferred a black briefcase. Manmohan Singh, who introduced the landmark 1991 economic liberalization reforms, also carried a black bag, whereas Pranab Mukherjee opted for a red briefcase akin to the British Gladstone case.
Piyush Goyal, presenting the interim Budget in February 2019, was the last finance minister to use a briefcase.
In both India and Britain, finance ministers traditionally pose with the Budget bag before presenting it. In Britain, the Chancellor of the Exchequer poses with the red briefcase outside 11 Downing Street before delivering the Budget speech.
After her maiden Budget in 2019, Sitharaman explained her decision to move away from the briefcase, emphasizing a break from colonial traditions. "It is high time we move on from the British hangover and embrace something of our own. Plus, it’s easier to carry," she remarked.
In response to her choice, former Finance Minister P. Chidambaram had quipped that a Congress finance minister would someday bring an iPad instead. True to that prediction, Sitharaman transitioned to a digital tablet in 2021 and has used it ever since, including for both Budgets presented in 2024.
