PM rolls forward, says up to states
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Tuesday virtually rejected the Opposition’s demand to roll back foreign direct investment in retail, saying the decision would benefit the country.
Dr Singh spelt out the party’s stand on an issue that has paralysed Parliament for the last few days in the presence of party chief Sonia Gandhi at a two-day national convention of elected office-bearers of the Indian Youth Congress here.
Speaking at the convention, the Prime Minister not only disapproved of the Opposition’s disruptive tactics in Parliament but also refused to succumb to the pressure tactics of over a dozen states threatening to oppose the Centre’s decision on FDI in retail. “We are not forcing anyone to follow this policy. State governments that are not convinced of its usefulness have the means to prevent foreign participation in retail businesses in their states,” Dr Singh said, adding that FDI in retail would result in the creation of many new employment opportunities across a range of sectors, such as food processing, transportation and storage.
The states that have opposed this policy are UP, Bihar, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, and Orissa. The BJP-ruled Gujarat, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Jharkhand will go by the party line while in Punjab the ruling Akali Dal will have to take a convincing stand on it.
“We have not taken this decision in haste, but after a lot of consideration. It is our firm conviction that the decision will benefit the country,” the PM said.
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