Trending on X, 6 PM: 2027 budget, D. Batlut, Bodi hearing, Ts. Davaatseren, Water Law, Microsoft outage

Below are the six topics Mongolian users discussed on X between 10:00 and 18:20 on November 13. Parliament's final approval of the 2027 state budget, followed shortly by Defense Minister D. Batlut's announcement that he is stepping down, was the most discussed topic of the day. Topics from earlier roundups are repeated only when there is a new development. Engagement figures are as of 18:23.

1. Parliament approves the 2027 budget with 41.5 trillion tugriks in spending and a 10% pension rise

At today's plenary session, the State Great Khural gave final approval to the 2027 state budget, with revenue of 39.2 trillion tugriks and spending of 41.5 trillion tugriks. According to iSee.mn and inews.mn, 82.7% of the 110 members who voted backed it. Finance Minister Z. Mendsaikhan said pensions will rise by another 10% from January 1, 2027, bringing the average pension to 1.3 million tugriks, while salaries for public service employees will rise by 10% and those for public administration and special service staff by 20% from April 1. Monthly wages of up to 792,000 tugriks will be exempt from personal income tax.

Many posts on X criticized the size of the budget and how it is spent. The @p_tsenguun account compared spending with GDP and calculated that "tax freedom day" would fall at the end of May in 2027, while @Mandarvaa88 shared S. Tsenguun's criticism of the budgets for the culture and energy ministries, along with the remark that S. Tsenguun had not been given the floor at the session. Read more in our separate story.

2. Defense Minister D. Batlut says he will step down, fueling talk of a cabinet reshuffle

Shortly after the budget passed, Defense Minister D. Batlut announced that he had decided to step down at his own request, saying "no post is above the national interest" and citing political stability. Under the Constitution, the decision rests with Prime Minister N. Uchral. Khumuun.mn noted that the prime minister had earlier said cabinet changes would come after the budget was approved.

iSee.mn and UBN, citing sources, reported that Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Development J. Enkhbayar may replace him, with MP B. Choijilsuren taking J. Enkhbayar's post, but no official decision has been announced. A post by @miigaasbntv describing these appointments as "settled" has not been officially confirmed.

3. N. Nomtoibayar says B. Enkhbayar and L. Oyun-Erdene should testify as witnesses at a Bodi hearing (new development)

This morning's roundup covered the dispute between B. Enkhbayar and L. Oyun-Erdene over the $110 million Bodi issue. During the day, comments by MP N. Nomtoibayar spread most widely. According to Sonin.mn, he said he had passed the proposal for a temporary investigative committee to MP D. Purevdavaa and that 23 members have signed it so far. By law, 32 members must back the initiative. N. Nomtoibayar said B. Enkhbayar and L. Oyun-Erdene had also signed, but as parties to the dispute they should be called as witnesses rather than sit on the committee.

He said investigators should rely on documents to establish why the railway project's cost rose from $655 million in the first feasibility study to $1.068 billion within a few months, and why an infrastructure contract was classified as a state secret. The two sides continue to trade accusations, none of which has been established in court.

4. Appeals court changes the prison sentence of former Erdenet chief Ts. Davaatseren and releases him

The criminal and civil appeals court in Orkhon province reviewed the case of Ts. Davaatseren, former director general of the Erdenet Mining Corporation, and changed the prison sentence handed down by the lower court. According to Gereg.mn, the court dropped the charges of granting preferential treatment to Achit-Ikht LLC, money laundering and unexplained enrichment, but found him guilty over the transfer of the Erdenet Medical hospital to Medipas LLC. It barred him from public office for five years and restricted him from leaving Chingeltei district for three years, and he was released from the detention center. Read more in our separate story.

5. Water Law draft: L. Munkhbayasgalan presses parliament as debate grows over the impact on mining (new development)

Ikon.mn reported that the Mongolian People's Party caucus took a five-day recess on whether to debate a revised Water Law drafted by 13 members led by L. Munkhbayasgalan and Kh. Battulga, following an earlier recess by the Democratic Party caucus. Today a post spread on X saying L. Munkhbayasgalan would hold his "Uncensored Talk" show in the parliament chamber if lawmakers do not back the bill. Some users, however, argued that the law could halt mining activity. The MPP caucus has said it will assess the bill's impact on the mining sector on the basis of expert studies.

6. Microsoft's global outage disrupts email at Mongolian organizations

The global outage of Microsoft 365 services such as Outlook and Teams was also felt in Mongolia, with users writing that corporate email did not work all day. According to AP and NBC News, the outage lasted more than 12 hours and affected companies and government bodies around the world. Microsoft said it had no indication of malicious activity, that services were being restored in stages, and that it had extended the retention window for undelivered mail to 48 hours.

Methodology: We ranked posts from about 200 major news and influential accounts found through X search, plus more than 50 keyword searches, by an engagement score (likes + 2× reposts + views/100), and checked the facts against news sites. Posts that could not be verified or that carried a risk of defamation were left out. Views expressed by individuals on X do not represent the position of egov.mn.