3 min readNew DelhiFeb 28, 2023 09:22 AM IST
First published on: Feb 28, 2023 at 06:37 AM IST
With AAP leaders having anticipated the arrest of Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, sources in the party said the responsibility of presenting the state annual budget could fall on Transport and Revenue minister Kailash Gahlot.
While the basic framework and general outline of the budget is already prepared, work is still underway and Sisodia’s absence means that officials from the finance and planning departments — both headed by him and both key in budget preparations — are in a spot.
Sources said that over the past few days, three meetings on budget preparation have been held and Gahlot was present in all.
The date for the budget session has not yet been announced. Over the last few years, it usually commenced after the second week of March. This time, it is expected to be held in the third or fourth week.
Sisodia was earlier summoned by CBI on February 19, but he had sought a week’s time to appear citing budget preparations. The investigation agency approved the request and summoned him on February 26. He was arrested the same evening after being questioned for 8 hours.
“The Deputy CM last week held several rounds of meetings with key departments and senior officials, but budget allocation to various departments was not finalised. Almost all departments have submitted the revenue estimates for the meeting,” said sources.
A highly placed source said, “The Budget is yet to be finalised but the work, by and large, is complete. The budget speech is also ready. Once the outlays and focus areas are finalised, things will become clearer. The question that remains is who will be the face of the budget now.”
Sisodia has presented all eight budgets of the AAP government since it first came to power with full majority in 2015.
“Transport minister Gahlot was present in all budget meetings held last week and it is likely that he will be the one to take charge of the finance department and present the budget, if the Deputy CM does not get bail,” said the source.
Sources also said a key meeting between the CM and other ministers is likely tomorrow, and he will take a final call then.
The party, meanwhile, is unlikely to remove Sisodia from the post of minister even if his absence is longer than a few weeks. Satyendar Jain, who has been arrested by the Enforcement Directorate on charges of money laundering, continues to be a minister, without a portfolio, despite being in jail for almost 9 months.
Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia leaves from Rouse Avenue court in in New Delhi on Monday. EXPRESS PHOTO BY PRAVEEN KHANNA 27 02 2023. 
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