Nirmala Sitharaman Creates History with 9th Consecutive Union Budget

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is set to create history today. She has become the first Union Finance Minister of independent India to present the Union Budget for the ninth consecutive time. With this achievement, she has broken her own record for presenting the highest number of consecutive budgets.

Nirmala Sitharaman Presents Budget for the 9th Time

With her ninth consecutive budget, Sitharaman is now close to the overall record held by former Prime Minister Morarji Desai, who presented a total of 10 budgets, though not consecutively. She has surpassed P. Chidambaram and Pranab Mukherjee to become the second highest budget-presenting finance minister in Indian history. She is also the first finance minister to present nine budgets consecutively.

Equals P. Chidambaram’s Record

P. Chidambaram presented nine budgets over three decades. With the presentation of the Union Budget 2026, Nirmala Sitharaman has equaled his total count. The significant difference is that all nine of Sitharaman’s budgets have been presented consecutively.

Just One Step Away from Morarji Desai

Sitharaman is now just one step away from Morarji Desai, who holds the record with 10 budgets. Desai’s tenure was split into two phases (1958–63 and 1967–69). In contrast, Sitharaman has maintained an uninterrupted streak since 2019 under Prime Minister Narendra Modi. If she presents the budget in 2027, she will equal Desai’s record for the most budgets presented by a single finance minister.