Ahead of the budget session of the Delhi Assembly that is to start on Friday, the government on Monday sent the budget for 2018-19 to the Lieutenant-Governor for approval, said officials.
The budget will then be sent to the Home Affairs Ministry and the President for final approval before being presented in the House. The Finance Department had sent the budget to the L-G on Monday, a senior officer said. Finance Minister Manish Sisodia is expected to give his budget speech in the Assembly on March 21.
The budget was finalised amidst ongoing tensions between the political executive and the bureaucracy following an alleged assault on the Chief Secretary by AAP MLAs at the Chief Minister’s residence on the night of February 19-20. While officers have been boycotting meetings with Ministers, those involved in budget planning did meet with the political executive as one of the exceptions. The weekly Cabinet meetings have been the other exception to the boycott.
