Balagopal disclosed cash balance first, says Satheesan

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Reacting to the charge that sensitive financial data were exposed in the preparation of the White Paper on Kerala’s fiscal health, Chief Minister V.D. Satheesan on Wednesday said former Finance Minister K.N. Balagopal was the first to reveal the cash balance in the treasury.

Mr. Satheesan also denied the allegation that artificial intelligence (AI) was used to draft the White Paper on the State’s fiscal health. He was reacting to CPI(M) leader and former Finance Minister T.M. Thomas Isaac’s charge that sensitive Finance department information such as treasury cash balance data had been divulged to external sources and that ‘substantial portions’ of the White Paper, tabled in the Assembly on June 4, were AI-generated.

“Who was the first to say that the treasury had a cash balance of ₹6000 crore? It was former Finance Minister K.N. Balagopal,” Mr. Satheesan said. (Mr. Balagopal’s remarks about the treasury balance were made in response to Mr. Satheesan’s own allegation that the UDF government has inherited an empty treasury.)

On the alleged use of AI, Mr. Satheesan said AI tools were not used in this specific instance. Former Union Cabinet Secretary K.M. Chandrasekhar, who headed the panel that drafted the White Paper, himself had denied that AI was used, he said. “Even if AI was used, what is wrong with it? The government intends to use AI tools for data-driven governance. We’ve already opened a study on it,” the Chief Minister said.

Mr. Satheesan also reiterated his concern that the State Plan would be short of ₹20,500 crore due to a higher anticipation in the 2026-27 Budget estimates than the provision for Kerala ultimately made by the 16th Finance Commission. Mr. Satheesan described the shortfall as “unexpected,” adding that no other State government in Kerala faced such a situation.

Mr. Balagopal said that his disclosure of the cash balance pertained to the final figures at the end of the financial year. Finance Ministers generally presented the final figures on the reven