BJP today said it will insist on discussion on FDI in retail issue under rules which entail voting and asked the Government to give up its “adamant” attitude and “allow the House to function” by agreeing to the Opposition demand.
The BJP Parliamentary Party met today for its weekly meeting to discuss its strategy in both Houses.
“The Government has not kept its assurance to Parliament that the decision on FDI will be taken only after discussing the issue with all stakeholders. The sense of the House on the issue can be known only through voting. So, the government should give up its adamant attitude,” BJP spokesperson Shahnawaz Hussain said.
He maintained that the Government is responsible for Parliament not functioning as it is not agreeing to voting and discussion on the FDI issue.
“The Government should not show arrogance of power and agree to the opposition demand. BJP and NDA are not ready for anything less than voting and discussion. We want a debate only under Rule 184,” Hussain said.
Party leaders indicated that BJP and its allies will not allow Parliament to function till the government accedes to its demand.
The Parliamentary Party also discussed the accusations of bribe being sought from Walmart for allowing it to set up shop here.
Another issue discussed was the pollution of Ganga River and the need to highlight it. As part of the “Aviral Ganga” project, BJP MPs from the regions through which the river flows have been asked to mobilise people to form a human chain on December 2.
Keywords: foreign direct investment in multi-brand retail, fdi in multibrand retail, BJP, Bharatiya Janata Party, Left party, FDI and voting, Parliament and FDI voting, Walmart, Tesco, Carrefour, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, Samajwadi Party, Bahujan Samaj Party, FDI in retail,
Comments:
Everybody, including Dr.Manmohan Singh and the so called votaries of FDI in mutli-brand retail trade, knows that “FDI in retail trade will not serve any purpose. It will do more harm than benefit the people.” In fact, in 2002, as leader of the opposition in Rajya Sabha, Dr.Singh fought tooth and nail against the introduction of FDI in retail. His colleague Mr. Priya Ranjan Munshi castigating the BJP, which was in power then and who tried to bring FDI in retail, said “it is anti-national to bring FDI in retail.” Now, Dr. Singh says that FDI in retail is pro- national and is to be welcomed, irrespective of merits or demerits. What is cause for the somersault by Dr.Singh and the Congress party? Is it not an open secret that they have fallen prey to the powerful lobbying by Walmart and other multinational retail giants and the pressure exerted by their home governments? Does it not mean that erroneous factors and extraneous considerations have played foremost roles? To vindicate its innocence, the government should not stand on prestige, but reverse its decision to allow foreign direct investment (FDI) in multi-brand retail since it will endanger livelihood of millions of people.
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