Nirmala Sitharaman sticks to tradition, returns with desi Bahi Khata

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, who is slated to present the annual Budget at 11 am on Saturday (February 1)  has yet again chosen her favourite ‘bahi-khata’ (a traditional ledger made of cloth) to carry instead of the customary suitcase.

Draped in a bright yellow saree, Sitharaman along with Minister of State for Finance Anurag Thakur and other officials, met President Ram Nath Kovind before starting for Lok Sabha where she will present the budget.

Sitharaman broke tradition last year too when she replaced the leather briefcase, in which a finance minister usually carries the budget documents, with a red pouch.

The switch was immediately noticed and Chief Economic Advisor Krishnamurthy Subramanian was prompt to explain it. “The government is following Indian tradition and bahi khata symbolises our departure from the slavery of Western thought,” he had said.

“Sitharaman believes that leather made products are not auspicious for the big occasion, so she avoided the leather bag and took the bahi khata wrapped in the red cloth. This is considered to be auspicious,” he said.