UPA Govt acts and then thinks: Yashwant Sinha

New Delhi: Former finance minister and BJP leader Yashwant Sinha has accused the government of acting without thinking. Talking to IBN18 Editor-in-Chief Rajdeep Sardesai on FDI in retail, Sinha said that the Opposition wants a complete rollback, and that a hold back won't help.

Rajdeep Sardesai: Let's go straight across to our newsmaker Yashwant Sinha, former finance minister and the Chairman of the Standing Committee on finance in Parliament. Mr Sinha, the bottom line, the government seems to be suggesting they are putting a hold back on FDI in retail. They are holding it back, they are not rolling it back. Is that something that will satisfy you? The government saying we are suspending it, we are not going to bring it in now. Is that enough or not?

Yashwant Sinha: Rajdeep, our stated position has been that there should be a rollback and not merely a holdback or keeping it abase. But I believe, that Pranab Mukherjee has spoken to Sushma Swaraj and she suggested to him that they should hold an all-party meeting, where this issue was even discussed earlier, and the government should make its position clear in the all-party meeting and let there be a consensus in the all-party meeting which will then enable the government to take a view and make a statement in Parliament in the right language which will satisfy all the opposition parties including their own allies.

Rajdeep Sardesai: But Mr Yashwant Sinha, your view on should there be hold back or should their be a complete rollback? Surely as a former finance minister you know when a government takes a decision, to expect it to make a total rollback, would be a capitulation. Isn't a hold back, perhaps, a better way before a consensus is arrived at or do you believe that this decision must be rolled back in your view?

Yashwant Sinha: Well, first of all let me tell you that I wish the government had tried to build the consensus before they took this step. Now having taken that step, you know they are now trying to build a consensus. So the government will lose faith either way, even if it goes for a hold back or they go for keeping it abase. There is a loss of faith of the government, there is no doubt about it. But this is something they should have taken into consideration before they took this decision without wider consultations. Our stated position as of now is that there should be roll back and not be a hold back.

Rajdeep Sardesai:But you know Mr Yashwant Sinha, you say that the government has an egg on its face but just look at it from those who are questioning, also the double standards, alleged double standards of the opposition and indeed leaders like yourself. When you were the finance minister, when the NDA was in power, there was note which spoke up of 100 per cent FDI in single brand retail endorsed by the NDA at that time, clearly NDA was in the favour of opening up the retail sector. Now it appears that the same NDA in opposition is opposing. Some will say you are opposing for the sake of opposing.

Yashwant Sinha: Yes, I mean it's a very natural question that you are asking me and clearly you know I have answered it on many occasions in the past few days and let me try and tell you that saying that we have changed our position is a complete mis-statement of facts. The 2002 GoM note which is being talked about, no decision was taken on that GoM note which talked about 100 per cent FDI in retail. So there are various proposals in all the government which float around, the important thing is not what was floating around; the important thing is what decision did we take. We didn't take a decision.

Rajdeep Sardesai: Sir but 100 per cent FDI was the part of the vision document as well, it was the part of your vision document in 2004.

Yashwant Sinha: No it was not, the vision, Rajdeep, the vision document of 2004 talked about 26 per cent in retail not 100 per cent as you are saying now. But in 2009 in the BJP manifesto, we departed from that position and we said clearly that we were oppose to Foreign Direct Investment in retail, that is our position, that was our position in 2009 and that is our position even today.

Rajdeep Sardesai:How do you respond to those who say "Yashwant Sinha as finance minister spoke of opening up of the insurance sector", in fact you took steps in that direction. Today as the chairperson of the Standing Committee of Finance in Parliament, you oppose the opening up of the insurance sector. Your government has spoken of opening up pensions. Now you oppose that, in opposition you are very different that in being in the government.

Yashwant Sinha: No, No Rajdeep, I think you have completely misunderstood the whole situation. The insurances bill which is before Parliament and before the Standing Committee talks about raising Foreign Direct Investment from 26 per cent to 49 per cent. The Standing Committee has not taken view on that, it is still pending with the Standing Committee. So the question of Yashwant Sinha doing this chart or the other doesn't arise. I am the chairman of the committee but as chairman I am also a member, one of the members of the committee and as far as the pension fund bill is concerned, let me tell you that we were...What is the purpose of the Standing Committee? We try and build an all-party consensus because it's an-all party committee and after building that consensus, we make certain recommendations to the government and the government has according to new reports taken a decision in the Cabinet, not to accept those recommendations. Now if they go break the consensus on pension fund then they have to be ready to face the consequences. I mean I am not responsible for that, so I have not personally changed my position.

Rajdeep Sardesai: Your point is well taken but let me know Mr Sinha there will be those who will say, critics who will say that the opposition is determined to obstruct Parliament to give the impression that the government is paralysed and that is the sole agenda with which the opposition today is moving - Paralyse the government, obstruct Parliament.

Yashwant Sinha: Yes okay, now let me respond to this charge. The government took the decision of FDI in retail when Parliament was in session. They knew the kind of opposition that they will have to face in Parliament. Now any government worth its salt would have taken everyone into confidence including the opposition parties. Here is a government which didn't take into confidence even its allies, much less the opposition parties. So the mistake lies squarely at the door of the government not at the door of the opposition. Second they act and then they think, you know they should think and then act. You know I can tell you...

Rajdeep Sardesai: But sir does every executive or a policy decision have to involve a consensus evolved by the opposition before it comes to the Cabinet? Surely that's not the way forward.

Yashwant Sinha: No this is the way forward, on all important policy decisions, whether they need a Parliamentary vote or not, it is important for the government to build a consensus and if you ask for my experience, I will tell you from my experience as finance minister for four years that reforms, you are talking about insurance sector, we built consensus with the Congress Party, we reached out to them, we took them on board and that's how it went into the Rajya Sabha. Otherwise we didn't have the majority to push it in the Rajya Sabha.

Rajdeep Sardesai: But are you not worried that if this process starts now, every policy decision gets deferred, for want of the consensus? We are losing out on a big opportunity at a time when the global economy is slowing down when the Indian economy is slowing down. Are you not worried that the more these decisions get deferred the more dangerous the signals will be for our economy?

Yashwant Sinha: Rajdeep, I am extremely worried as an Indian citizen at the manner in which the India growth story is coming to grief. I am extremely worried as Member of Parliament at the slowdown and other maladies which are afflicting our economy. I am very worried but I would like to tell you that this is not the way to go forward. There are hundred other things which this government could do, why just make FDI in retail the biggest prestige issue of this government.

Rajdeep Sardesai: But you are blocking all the reforms sir, you are blocking all reforms.

Yashwant Sinha: No, nobody is blocking.

Rajdeep Sardesai: The perception is that you are blocking all reforms. Tell me one reform to kick start the economy you would support?

Yashwant Sinha: Let me give you an example, we returned, submitted our report on company's bill which is a humongous piece of legislation because it's a completely new bill. In the monsoon session, Rajdeep last year, 15 months had elapsed if the government has not come back to Parliament would you blame the opposition, would you blame the Standing Committees? Take the pension fund story. The pension fund bill was introduced by this UPA I government in the budget session of 2005. I was a member of the Finance Committee then, we submitted our report to Parliament in July 2005, from July 2005 until the UPA I government demitted office, they didn't have the courage to come to Parliament. So is the opposition responsible? I can give you chapter and verse, any number of instances where this government has seized to govern and they have seized to govern because of their own internal contradictions not because of the opposition and they go to channels and say opposition is to be blamed. This is a complete mis-statement of facts and I am sorry if you also tend to think like this I will say please correct your position.

Rajdeep Sardesai: Okay, Mr Sinha let me put one final question to you and I want your personal opinion on it. It's been nine days Parliament has been stalled, it's a 22-day session. Do you expect if the government sticks to its stand of holding back FDI in retail, in an attempt to evolve the consensus, will Parliament restart on your view or do you expect a little bit more from the government before you can commit that Parliament will restart?

Yashwant Sinha: Rajdeep, let me make this point to you, over the last nine days, it is not merely FDI in retail which has been holding back Parliament. It's the Telangana MPs who want the Telangana separate state bill to be brought. Many of them belong to the Congress Party. They come into the well of the house and disrupt Parliament. There is the Mullaperiyar Dam issue between Kerala and Tamil Nadu, they come into well of the house. They disturb the proceedings. Parliament is not being controlled merely by the BJP or the NDA. There are other elements in this Parliament in the Lok Sabha and they have their own views. So as far as retail FDI as a call of stalemate in Parliament is concerned, I can only say what I have said already that they should call an all-party meeting to settle the issue and then come to Parliament and make a statement. And then as far as we are concerned and if it is an agreed statement Parliament will certainly function.

Rajdeep Sardesai:As a senior MP are you not worried we are heading for a gridlock? The government and the opposition in the Parliament is heading for a gridlock, at a time of an economic slowdown. Does that not worry you sir?

Yashwant Sinha: No, it worries me Rajdeep, it worries me, but I'll like to make the point that the whole of last year's winter session was washed out only because of the obstinacy of this government. They conceded a JPC two months down the line but they didn't concede it, you know in 30 days when the Winter Session was going on. Similarly if nine days have been lost, they have been lost once again because of the obstinacy of the government. In our time let me remind you there was the UTI and US 64 crisis. The same Congress party wanted, moved an adjournment motion and the great democrat Mr Vajpayee told me that you must accept the adjournment motion, debate in Parliament. We debated it and defeated it. This is the way to go otherwise don't have the adjournment rule, don't have 184, don't have 168 in Rajya Sabha. I mean why are there these rules?

Rajdeep Sardesai: Okay, you made your point I think Yashwant Sinha, appreciate your joining us. Your concern, it is the government which has to take the initiative. You are saying don't blame the opposition for what's gone wrong in Parliament.

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