New Delhi: In an unusual situation, the presentation of the Union Budget for 2014-15 was halted in Lok Sabha for five minutes after Finance Minister Arun Jaitley sought a break.
Acceding to the Minister’s request, Speaker Sumitra Mahajan gave a five-minute break as he appeared feeling exhausted after a 40-minute fast-paced speech. When the House reassembled, the Speaker said the break was given since he felt “slightly unwell”.
She then allowed him to resume the Budget presentation while being seated. Lok Sabha sources said the 61-year-old Minister also felt back pain and was once seen leaning on the lectern. Earlier, during his speech he was seen frequently drinking water.
This is probably for the first time that the Budget speech was broken.