Union Budget 2026: In accordance with parliamentary convention, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is expected to present the Union Budget for the next fiscal year, 2026-27, on Sunday. This is because, since 2017, the budget has been presented on February 1st...

Budget 2026: In accordance with parliamentary conventions, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman may present the General Budget for the next fiscal year, 2026-27, on a Sunday. This is because since 2017, the budget has been presented on February 1st, and next year, February 1st will fall on a Sunday.

However, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju clarified that such decisions are made by the Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs and are made at the appropriate time. The Modi government instituted the practice of presenting the budget on February 1st so that it could be implemented before the start of the new fiscal year, i.e., April 1st.

Presenting the budget on Sunday will be special

If the Finance Minister presents the budget on February 1st in 2026 , it will be significant, as it will likely be the first time the general budget will be presented on a Sunday. A Sunday presentation has not been common in recent years.

In previous years, there have been two occasions when the Union Budget was presented on a Saturday. In 2015, Arun Jaitley and in 2020, Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Union Budget on February 1st (Saturday). Consequently, the stock market was also opened for a special opening.

From 2017, the budget started being presented on February 1.

The date of the presentation of the General Budget was significantly changed in 2017. Prior to 2017, the General Budget was presented on the last day of February. At that time, the government received approval for expenditures for the first three months of the new financial year, while the full-year budget was approved later.

In 2017, the central government decided to make a major change. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley instituted the practice of presenting the budget on February 1st in 2017. This ensured the budget received parliamentary approval by the end of March, meaning all procedures were completed before the start of the new financial year.

In any case, Parliament has met on Sundays on special occasions, such as during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and on May 13, 2012, on the 60th anniversary of the first sitting of Parliament.