He also asked why does the finance minister list the Budget Estimate (BE) of fiscal deficit side-by-side with the Revised Estimate (RE) of the fiscal deficit.”In order to show the world that the government has ‘improved’ upon the original estimate of the fiscal deficit,” he said.”The same logic applies to all estimates. As far as capital expenditure in 2024-25 is concerned, the numbers conclusively prove that there was a reduction (cut) in 2024-25,” Chidambaram said in the statement.Earlier, Sitharaman said the capital expenditure has not been reduced but has gone up to Rs 11.21 lakh crore for the 2025-26 fiscal, and claims of cuts are misleading and based on flawed comparisons.Replying during the Question Hour in the Rajya Sabha, Sitharaman said the capital expenditure was Rs 11.11 lakh crore in 2024-25.”Actually, (in) the budget this year. It has gone up to Rs 11.21 lakh crore. So, the capital expenditure has not been cut at all,” she said.”So, cutting down the capital expenditure is not the case with us,” she added.Sitharaman was responding to a question by Chidambaram.Later, responding to a social media post of Chidambaram, Sitharaman said his “claims of a cut in capital expenditure are misleading and based on flawed comparisons”.Chidambaram’s selective arithmetic and flawed comparisons between BE and RE of the same year may serve political rhetoric but do little for informed public discourse, she said in a post on X.
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