INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
its annual appearance this morning as Union Minister Piyush Goyal smiled for the cameras before presenting the Interim Budget
Down the years, it has not always been red; the briefcase has been black, tan and brown too.Why the briefcase The word "Budget" originates
from the French "bougette" or leather bag, the internet tells us, tracing the origin of the tradition of a finance minister carrying the
(File)Former prime minister Manmohan Singh, as the finance minister who delivered the iconic 1991 proposals, carried a black bag.Yashwant
Sinha, finance minister in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee-led governments, carried black too, a buckles affair.Pranab Mukherjee, as Manmohan
Singh's finance minister, took to a red briefcase similar to the Gladstone case of Britain
It was velvet, according to reports.Pranab Mukherjee with his budget briefcase when he was the finance minister
(File)The "budget case" tradition started in the 18th century, when the Chancellor of the Exchequer or Britain's budget chief was asked to
'open the budget' while presenting his annual statement.In 1860, the then British budget chief William E
Gladstone, carried his papers in a red suitcase with the Queen's monogram in gold
He went on to become prime minister
The same bag was used by several governments.India's first budget was presented by RK Shanmukham Chetty in 1947, months after independence
He appeared to carry a leather bag
Ten years later, TT Krishnamachari carried something that looked like a file bag
Jawaharlal Nehru - he presented the budget in 1958 - carried a black briefcase.Find LIVE Budget 2019, updates, latest news, videos, key
highlights, reactions, tax and policy changes here
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