Expecting a populist Budget 2018? FM's hands could be tied by fiscal constraints

The country is abuzz with discussions around the upcoming National Budget to be presented by the finance minister (FM) on February 1, 2018. Since we Indians are an opinionated lot, all of us have views on what the FM should do or not do. The Finance Minister is in an unenviable position of having to meet multiple expectations ranging from that of corporates or businesses seeking “relief” after GST implementation to individual tax payers hoping for lower income tax rates.  The barrage of articles on Budget expectations, including this one, does seem to suggest that the annual National Budget has