Union Budget presentations can be notoriously long-winded and a tad dull. So, finance ministers have generally used poetry as props to liven up proceedings.


While former finance minister P Chidambaram has always quoted from his favourite poet Saint Tiruvalluvar, Arun Jaitley has peppered his speeches with a few couplets in each budget speech, which always took potshots at the Opposition.


In the 2015 budget Jaitley said:

Kuch to phool khilaye humne, aur kuch phool khilane hai;
Mushkil yeh hai bag me ab tak, kaante kai purane hai,

(We have grown some flowers, a lot of them need to grown even now; but the difficulty is that there are a lot of thorns in the garden). That was Jaitleys dig at Opposition parties.

In the 2016-17 Budget, Jaitley used a four-line verse.

Kashti Chalane Walon ne jab haar ke di patwaar hamein Leherlehar toofan mile aur maujmauj manjhdar hamein
Phir bhi dikhaya hai hamne aur phir ye dikha denge sabko
In Haalaat me aata hai, dariya karna paar hamein.

(When the boatman gave us the oar after getting defeated, we met the storm at every wave and midstream, yet we have shown and will show it to all again, we know how to cross the sea even in these circumstances).


Today, Jaitley urged the Opposition to rally with the government and take the country forward with these lines.  
Iss mod par na ghabra kar tham jaaiye aap,
Jo baat nayi hai usay apnaaiye aap,
Darte hain nayi raah pe kyun chalne se,
Hum aage aage chalte hain aaiye aap.

Let us not stop at this juncture,
Let us adopt what is new,
Why are you scared of walking on a new path,
We walk ahead, you follow.