Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman ruled out any spectacular announcement for her sixth budget on February 1, 2024, saying it would just be a ‘vote on account’ before the General Elections.

A full Budget for the 2024-25 fiscal would be presented in July next year by the new government elected after the April-May General Elections.

What is vote on account?

• Article 116 of the Constitution deals with vote on account.

• Usually, in an election year, the central government does not present a full Union Budget. Instead it presents a vote on account. 

• Traditionally, a vote on account is an authorisation for incurring certain expenditures required till a new government takes office.

• Governments in the past have refrained from making any major policy announcement during the vote on account.

• The full Budget is presented after the elections by the newly formed central government. 

• The government needs money to fund its expenses for a short period of time or until a full Budget is passed.

• Vote on account is a grant in advance by Parliament, in respect of the estimated expenditure for a part of new financial year, pending the completion of procedure relating to the voting on the demand for grants and the passing of the Appropriation Bill.

• It presents an estimate of expenditures to be sanctioned till the full Budget is passed.

• An Appropriation Bill is passed annually (or at various times of the year) providing for the withdrawal or appropriation from and out of the Consolidated Fund of India of moneys by Lok Sabha and moneys charged on the Consolidated Fund for the services of a financial year or a part thereof.

• An Appropriation Bill is introduced in pursuance of Article 114(1) of the Constitution of India to provide for the appropriation out of the Consolidated Fund of India.

• The vote on account gives approval to the Centre for withdrawal of money from the Consolidated Fund of India for a specified expenditure.

• The vote on account is passed by the Lok Sabha without discussion.

• Before the vote on account, the governments also do not present the customary pre-budget Economic Survey that traditionally is presented a day before the presentation of the full Budget. The survey which details the state of the economy and directional events, is presented when the full Budget is tabled in Parliament.

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