Budget 2021: Eyeing West Bengal polls, FM Sitharaman starts budget speech with Rabindranath's poem

Finance Minister takes the stage to present the Union Budget 2021-22.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on February 1 recited Rabindranath Tagore's poem during her Budget 2021 presentation in the Parliament.

Quoting the legendary poet she said: "Faith is the bird that feels the light and sings when the dawn is still dark."

FM's decision to kick-start her presentation with a poem by Tagore comes at the backdrop of ruling party BJP eyeing a victory in the elections scheduled to be held in April-May in the eastern state. In a bid to capture Bengal, the party has already rushed a battery of its top leaders and ministers to address campaigns and rallies with the polls insight.

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Last week leaders from Bengal's ruling party TMC joined the saffron party after meeting Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Delhi.

Reacting to the development, senior TMC MP and party spokesperson Sougata Ray said, "Those who left don't have a long political history, and most of them were inducted into the party by (Chief Minister and party supremo) Mamata Banerjee. In the future, the TMC will be careful."