Rahul wants Bihar type alliance with Mamata

by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group

Makes an offer to TMC

Harish Gupta
New Delhi, Nov. 29:

Desirous to create Bihar-type Mahagathbandhan against the BJP in West Bengal, Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi established a direct contact with TMC chief and West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee.While the first round of informal talks took place at the Patna Airport when Rahul Gandhi and Mamata Banerjee were waiting to board their respective flights to return to Delhi and Kolkata respectively in their special aircraft.

Highly placed sources say that Rahul Gandhi took the initiative to walk up to Mamata Banerjee and the one-to-one meeting continued for more than 20 minutes.What transpired between the two was immediately known then. Since both of them had gone to Patna to attend Nitish Kumar's swearing-in-ceremony and had bumped into each other at the podium as well, not much significance was attached to it then.It has not surfaced that Rahul Gandhi made an upfront offer to Mamata Banerjee that Congress is willing to settle for anywhere between 55-65 Assembly seats in West Bengal going to polls in May 2016. 

The Congress has 40 MLAs in a House of 294 and had secured second position in 25-odd constituencies in 2011 Assembly polls. Rahul Gandhi is so keen to create Mahagathbandhan against the BJP that he is even willing to concede more seats to the TMC. Mamata Banerjee was taken by complete surprise when Rahul Gandhi made this upfront offer. She is reported to have told Gandhi that she would revert to him on the issue after discussing it within the party forum. 

Since Mamata Banerjee is expected to visit Delhi on December 7 to attend the marriage of Finance Minister Arun Jaitley's daughter, she may meet Congress president Sonia Gandhi as well. Though the purpose of her visit is to seek central funds for various projects, she cannot have any truck with the BJP in West Bengal. 

The Modi government requires the support of her 33 MPs in Lok Sabha and 11 in the Rajya Sabha. Though Rahul Gandhi has a good personal rapport with CPM leader Sitaram Yechury, the Congress has not enter into any electoral understanding with the CPM. The two are contesting against each other in Kerala in May 2016 Assembly polls. Therefore, there can be no electoral understanding in West Bengal.  Rahul Gandhi's unilateral offer to Mamata Banerjee is a tactical move so that she doesn't go with the BJP in Parliament or outside. The Congress' vote bank is dwindling by the day and an electoral understanding may help in containing the slide.

Sonia: 3 conditions on GST 'non-negotiable'

by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group

Sonia: 3 conditions on GST 'non-negotiable'

Harish Gupta

New Delhi, Nov. 26 :

Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Thursday categorically stated that 'three issues' raised by the party on the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Bill were 'non-negotiable.'

She came along with her son Rahul Gandhi in the Central Hall of Parliament and talked informally to a group of journalists. When asked if there was a possibility of any negotiations with the ruling NDA on the GST bill, she shot back, "we are willing to talk. But three issues are non-negotiable." 

Rahul Gandhi joined the issue and listed three issues: 1 percent tax for manufacturing states, Cap of 18 percent for GST rate and an independent dispute resolution mechanism for GST. The two leaders did not agree with the claim of Finance Minister Arun Jaitley that he had spoken to every Congress leader on GST. "He called on us separately to give us his daughter"s wedding invitation. It was a personal call," the Gandhis told journalists.

The two leaders did not agree with the claim of Finance Minister Arun Jaitley

 that he had spoken to every Congress leader on GST.

However, they hinted that scope of talks exist. But "Unless the government responds, we will not compromise." Mr Gandhi reiterated what he said yesterday in response to questions about his party blocking the reform. He said, "Do we want the GST? Are we ready to compromise on GST? Are we ready to talk on GST? Absolutely. Are we going to accept just being thrown aside, no."

The two leaders did not agree with the claim of Finance Minister Arun Jaitley that he had spoken to every Congress leader on GST.

PM opens doors for talks with Congress

by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group

￭ Winter session of Parliament begins today

Rahul lists 3 conditions for GST Bill

GST may come up for debate after Dec. 7

Harish Gupta

New Delhi, Nov. 25 :

Uncertainty hinges on the passage of the GST Bill during the Winter session despite the Prime Minister Narendra Modi's willingness to talk to the Opposition parties and Opposition throwing a broad hint not to disrupt the Parliament this time.

It is clear that a resurgent Congress is playing a hard ball on the GST Bill and the ruling NDA unwilling to dilute its crucial clauses.The PM rather deputed Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkiah Naidu to talk to the Opposition leaders on the GST bill as he is keen that the Bill is passed this session. 

But a clue of hardening of attitude was given by Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi in Bengaluru today who said, "We have differences on three clauses of the GST Bill with the Government." Though he did not elaborate these three clauses, he hit out at the Prime Minister, Narendra Modi saying that the democracy is all about the discussion. "But our present PM has not done it (Called the Congress) even once."

The Congress wants that the GST regime should clearly spell out the percentage of taxation be fixed (18% at present. The Congress also wants abolition of provision of additional tax of one per cent that will be assigned to the states and clearly spell out dispute resolution mechanism. Rahul Gandhi told his party leaders in Parliament that the party can't accept a GST regime which doesn't have a Cap. No unlimited taxation can be allowed."

But one thing is clearly emerging that the ruling NDA and the Opposition will hold discussions on GST and other issues during this session. In all probability, the GST bill come up for discussion after December 7. The PM is leaving for Paris on November 29 and will return on December 2 while Arun Jaitley will be busy with the marriage functions of his daughter during December 5-7. During this intervening period the differences may be thrashed out, sources say. Former Finance Minister P Chidambaram tweeted today that the government is going for a confrontation with the Opposition on the GST Bill quoting Jaitley"s speech yesterday at Assochem. But it seems clear that Congress would insist on a discussion and vote in the Rajya Sabha rather than disrupting the House.

 

Parliament: The coming gridlock

by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group

With winter session of the Parliament a couple of days away, everyone who has a stake in the national economy — be it as job seeker or investor — is keeping his fingers crossed for the long-awaited clearance of a slew of pro-reform bills. There is little hope, though, that what the BJP-majority Lok Sabha proposes will not be disposed as before in the Rajya Sabha where the ruling party is in utter minority. However, one must be a daring gambler to place bet on even a temporary truce between the treasury benches and the opposition any time soon, if at all. "Reform for me", tweeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi, "is just a way station on the long journey to the destination. The destination is the transformation of India". While it remains unclear as to how does he intend to transform India, and into what, one thing that is clear is the rising disenchantment in the country with Modi's last year's election promise that achhe din, better days, are round the corner. The engine that moves a democratic government is the Parliament has predictably been brought to a grinding halt.

The previous monsoon session was indeed a wash-out in the midst of persistent demand from the Congress for resignation of BJP functionaries involved in the government allegedly winking at fugitive cricket entrepreneur Lalit Modi evading prosecution in India. The outlook of the coming session seems no better. Most opposition parties, particularly the Congress, have been greatly energised by the BJP's rout in Bihar. Their agenda for the Parliament has been set by the outcry against "intolerance". Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi seems having become particularly aggressive after his party's nominal electoral success in Bihar. BJP, on the other hand, has kept escalating its attack on the Congress, with its ideological brother Subramaniam Swamy having initiated a web of corruption charges against both Rahul and his mother Sonia Gandhi, Congress president. It is certainly not the atmosphere suited to bipartisan lawmaking. Which is a pity, as it will push away once again the possibility of having a Goods and Services Tax (GST).

Much of India's future ability to attract investment depends on having a law like GST as it levels the states' uneven tax rates, thus giving the national economy the tax uniformity that distinguishes the European Union. The GST council may settle for a steep rate of around 25 per cent, which is potentially inflationary, and yet exclude items like petrol and petroleum products, not to speak of alcoholic beverages etc. Still, a GST in some form is better than having none. But that's exactly how things seem to be now poised. After having opposed GST during its long stint as the main opposition party, BJP, on assuming power, suddenly turned its supporter. But instead of putting the relevant Constitution amendment before the Standing Committee, the Modi government got it passed straight in the lower House. Congress and its allies returned the compliment by blocking it in the Rajya Sabha.

Furthermore, logjam in the Parliament may put in the no-go area yet another crucial legislation concerning bankruptcy. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley is hopeful of putting into effect a new law that may set a swift deadline of 180 days for passing final verdict on a sick firm and allow it another 90 days if creditors agree. According to a World Bank estimate, it takes 4.3 years on an average for a bankruptcy dispute to be resolved in India. In a recent article, The Economist magazine reported that the recovery rate of debts in India is just about 25.7 per cent which, as it said, is one of the worst rates in developing countries. The classic case of mega-default is Kingfisher Airlines which was grounded in 2012 after leaving a debt of US $1.5 billion. If the law is passed, many sick firms can be revived instead of being left to die slowly. Besides, the banking sector, reeling under stressed loans which have gone up five times to US $133 billion since 2011, can also breathe freely.

It is not that the economy is growing so impressively that the government can remain unfazed by the parliamentary gridlock faced by its efforts at reform. It's not so easy to look the other way. RBI governor Raghuram Rajan has recently commented on the potential harm from lack of private and public investment, and if the government has no fund to raise investment, the private firms too are running 30 per cent below capacity. Judging from Prime Minister Modi's relentless foreign visits, it is obvious that he wants to make up for the shortfall in domestic investment with foreign investment. It worked in the first half of this year, with US $19.4 billion FDI rolling in during the period. But the roadblock to pass laws has hit the headlines all over, and investors have become cautious. For the first time since September 2013,  when Modi’s name was aired for the first time as a possible PM and foreign institutional investors began to buy Indian stocks, there was no net outgo of foreign fund from the Indian bourses, till very recently. A possible increase in the US Fed rate, combined with failure of the NDA government to pass GST and bankruptcy laws, may cause bloodbath in the stock market, not to speak of its bizarre backwash on the economy.

There is not much time left, therefore, for Modi’s grandiose project to “transform” India. The more urgent task for him is to stop thinking that the Opposition can be bullied into submission. Instead, he must instill into his adversaries the comforting feeling that they will get an equal share of credit if jobs and investment figures begin to look decent again and growth comes automatically instead of being puffed up with slick numbers. If a pragmatic Modi can adopt Aadhar, MANREGA and other UPA schemes, what’s the problem in taking the Opposition along the GST, Bankruptcy law to transform India.

PMO plays tough, another min gets jolt

by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group

Exclusive Report

A Cabinet minister is normally entitled to appoint 15 officers including PS, OSD and those on other ranks. Since Chaudhary Birender Singh holds the charge of three more departments, he can appoint a personal staff of 28 persons.

 Birender Singh loses two OSDs

￭ New transfer policy for private secretaries too

Harish Gupta

New Delhi, Nov 22: 

The Prime Minister's Office continues to play tough when it comes to hiring the private secretaries (PS) or Officers on Special Duty (OSDs) or personal staff of the ministers in the government. Even after 18 months into the office, the ministers in the NDA government are still struggling to find personal staff "acceptable" to the PMO. 

The latest shocker came to Union rural development minister Chaudhary Birender Singh who was told by the PMO that the appointments of two OSDs cannot be approved. Incidentally, one of the two OSDs was functioning in with the minister for the past 10 months. His file was sent for approval to the PMO immediately after being appointed 10 months ago. But the PMO rejected it now. Since he is a retired IRS officer, he was drawing his pension and doesn't suffer financially. But the other OSD is an advocate and politically close to the minister.

A Cabinet minister is normally entitled to appoint 15 officers including PS, OSD and those on other ranks. Since Chaudhary Birender Singh holds the charge of three more departments, he can appoint a personal staff of 28 persons. Birender Singh was reportedly upset with the decision and reported to have taken up the issue with the PMO as well. But to no avail. It may be mentioned that even Union home minister Rajnath Singh, HRD minister Smriti Irani, minority affairs minister Najma Heptualla, consumer affairs minister Ram Vilas Paswan and a couple of others were not allowed to retain the officers of their choice. Rajnath Singh's officer was repatriated prematurely while Smriti Irani's OSD was given marching orders after he worked for 10 months.

A highly placed source in the PMO explained that the appointment of private persons in the ministerial staff is closely scrutinized at various levels in the revenue, home, IB, RAW & other departments. The ministers may appoint some of their favourites in their personal staff. But certain persons are not found fit after the inquiry and proposals are rejected. 

The PMO had conveyed to the ministers last year that no sanction will be granted to the person for appointment if he had worked during the UPA regime or for that matter in the United Front governments. Earlier, even lower rank staff members were not allowed to join. But this rule was relaxed.

Even on Friday last (November 20), the Department of Personnel under the PMO issued fresh guidelines with regard to Rotational Transfer Policy (RTP) for private secretaries belonging to the Central Secretariat Services. The PMO wants that duration of PS' working in various ministries and departments be for a fixed tenure and they must be rotated. The continuance of an officer for a longer duration in the same ministry and the same department is not considered appropriate by the present dispensation. All departments have been directed to submit details by the end of this month about such private secretaries working with them.