Arvind Kejriwal writes to Narendra Modi, please don't stop Delhi budget

The presentation of the Delhi government's Budget for 2023-24, which was scheduled for Tuesday, has been put on hold with the Kejriwal dispensation and the central government trading charges over allocations under various heads.

New Delhi: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has written a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking his approval to present the Union Territory's budget in the assembly. The budget has been delayed, and Kejriwal claimed in his letter that it was the first time in the country's 75-year history that a state budget had been stopped, asking if the PM hated the residents of Delhi.

Kejriwal pleaded with the PM, stating, "Please don't stall Delhi's budget. With folded hands, Delhiites urge you to pass their budget." The request came after the Centre sought clarification from the Delhi government on why the expenditure on advertisements was higher than infrastructure spending before clearing the budget's presentation.

The Delhi Chief Minister refuted the allegations and accused the Centre of being angry with the people of Delhi. He asserted that the allocation for advertisements was the same as last year, and the total budget size was Rs 78,800 crore, out of which Rs 22,000 crore was earmarked for infrastructure and only Rs 550 crore for advertising.

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) responded to Kejriwal's statement by saying that it had requested clarification from the AAP government, and the budget proposal had a high allocation for advertisements and relatively low funding for infrastructure and other development initiatives. One of the MHA sources claimed that the AAP government had not yet responded to their queries.

The CM's announcement and the MHA's response hinted at a fresh round of confrontation between the AAP dispensation and the Union government. The budget will not be tabled on Tuesday as planned, according to sources in the Delhi government.

The LG office is waiting for the file to be sent from the CM, and there is no clarity on when the budget will be presented in the assembly. The ongoing budget session of the assembly is scheduled to conclude on March 23. Finance minister Kailash Gahlot presented the economic survey, 2022-23, report in the ongoing budget session of the Delhi assembly and also tabled an outcome budget of the Kejriwal government.

According to sources in the Lieutenant Governor's office, the LG approved the Annual Financial Statement for 2023-2024 with certain observations on March 9 and sent the file to the CM. The Delhi government sought the President's approval by sending a letter to the Home Ministry, as mandated by law. The Home Ministry conveyed its observations to the Delhi government on March 17.

The AAP government has been at loggerheads with the Centre on several issues, including the farmers' protest and the proposed amendments to the GNCTD Act. The ongoing tussle between the two is expected to continue, with the budget's delay likely to escalate the confrontation. (With Agency Inputs)