Budget leaked on Twitter before presentation in House: Munde

Leader of the Opposition in Maharashtra Legislative Council Dhananjay Munde on Tuesday claimed that details of the state budget were leaked on the Twitter handle of finance minister Sudhir Mungantiwar before presentation in the Assembly.

Munde and some other opposition members raised the issue in the Council and disrupted the budget presentation by Minister of State for Finance Deepak Kesarkar in the House.

Since Maharashtra Legislature comprises the Assembly and the Council, the state budget is presented simultaneously by a cabinet minister and a junior minister in the Lower and Upper House, respectively.

When Kesarkar tried to present the budget in the Upper House, Munde waved his mobile phone and then read out from it some budget details, which he claimed were posted on the official Twitter account of Mungantiwar.

Munde said even before Mungantiwar read out the first part of the budget in the Assembly, his twitter account already put out the information.

Following ruckus over the issue, Legislative Council Chairman Ramraje Naik Nimbalkar adjourned the House for 10 minutes.

When the House resumed, BJP member and state revenue minister Chandrakant Patil said he would move a no-confidence motion against Nimbalkar.

"We have come to the conclusion that the House chairman cannot protect our rights. We will move a no- confidence motion against you," said Patil, who is leader of the House.