Budget 2026: Sitharaman Creates History With 9th Consecutive Budget As Longest Serving FM

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday makes history as she presents a record ninth consecutive Budget. This will take Sitharaman closer to the record of 10 budgets that were presented by former Prime Minister Morarji Desai over different time periods.

Former finance ministers P Chidambaram and Pranab Mukherjee had presented nine and eight budgets, respectively, under different prime ministers.

Sitharaman, however, will continue to hold the record of presenting the maximum number of budgets on the trot -- nine straight budgets under Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

She was appointed as India's first full-time woman finance minister in 2019 when Prime Minister Narendra Modi won a decisive second term. After Modi came back to power in 2024 for the third time, Sitharaman continued to retain her finance portfolio.

Sitharaman took charge of the Finance Ministry on May 31, 2019, and has steered the economy through crucial years.

Sitharaman completed six years and eight months in office on January 31, 2026. Ahead of the Budget session, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had said Sitharaman presenting the Union Budget for the ninth consecutive time "will be recorded as a matter of pride in India's parliamentary history".

Former prime minister Morarji Desai had presented the Union Budget on 10 occasions, while P Chidambaram presented the Budget nine times, but not for consecutive years.

The other longest-serving Finance Minister at a stretch was C D Deshmukh, who took charge of the Ministry on June 1, 1950, and remained in office for about six years and two months.

With PTI inputs.