Arun Jaitley in US for health checkup prior to government's last Budget

While report on a news website mentions soft tissue cancer in his thigh, sources say Arun Jaitley will be back by the weekend

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, 66, who had a kidney transplant operation and follow-up check-ups at AIIMS last year, unexpectedly left for the US on Sunday night for a "regular medical check-up", sources said. This comes at a time when he is supposed to present the BJP-led NDA government's sixth and last Budget on February 1.

Though The Wire says that he is in New York for the treatment of soft tissue cancer in his thigh and is supposed to undergo a surgery, sources claim that he would be back by the weekend. However, officially, the finance minister has said he was going on personal leave for two weeks to New York.

This is Jaitley's first overseas visit since his kidney ailment was confirmed in April last year. He was supposed to be a keynote speaker at the 7th C D Deshmukh Memorial Lecture organised by National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER) on Tuesday evening.

Though the Budget is supposed to be an interim one, seeking Parliament nod for government spending for first four months of 2019-20 fiscal year beginning April, it is widely expected that his speech would be a full-length budget speech. The new government would present the Budget for the fiscal in July.

Jaitley is unlikely to attend the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland next week, as his name does not figure in the latest list of registered participants. The earlier list had his name, including for an official session on emerging markets outlook.

Feb 1
Day BJP-led NDA government's last Budget will be presented

May 14
Day last year Arun Jaitley underwent a renal surgery

Aug 23
Day last year he returned as finance minister

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