An official in the Assam assembly informed that the tabling of the interim budget of Assam was postponed on Thursday hours before its schedule.
While postponing the interim budget it was stated that it clashed with the Governor’s address. However, sources claim that it was deferred as state Finance Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma was accompanying Union Home Minister Amit Shah, who reached the state in the early hours on a sudden “personal visit”.
Assam Assembly Secretary Amarendra Narayan Deka while speaking in this regard to the media said, “The Business Advisory Committee (BAC) last night decided to defer presentation of the Budget to Friday because the Governor’s speech was there today. The BAC saw that keeping two important presentations on the same day would have dragged the affairs for a long time.”
The secretary also denied that the development has any connection to the visit of Shah.
As per the Assembly Calendar of the present session, ‘Vote on Accounts Budget for 2021-22′ was listed at serial number 9 of Thursday’s business.
Shah arrived at around 2.30 am in Guwahati and met Ananta Roy of the Koch-Rajbongshi community at Chatipur in Assam’s Chirang district in the morning.
Shah’s meeting with the Greater Coochbehar Peoples’ Association leader comes ahead of the assembly elections in neighboring West Bengal.
Sarma, a powerful BJP leader in the Northeast, was accompanying Shah and that is why “the budget could not be presented today”, sources said.
When contacted, several spokespersons of the BJP said they were unaware of Shah’s visit to the state.
It is worth mentioning that it will be the last Budget of the present BJP-led government before the state goes to the polls.
The three-day session of the Assam Legislative Assembly is scheduled to continue till Saturday.