New Delhi: Another morning in Parliament lost - both Houses have followed their daily routine of being adjourned because of the battle over Foreign Direct Investment or FDI in retail. They will now reconvene on Wednesday.
Speaking at a public function in Delhi today, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee blamed the opposition and "narrow politics" for the stand-off.
"You can exercise your authority within your territorial limit, but don't stand in the way of the others who want to implement it. Therefore, let there be an enabling provision and this is an enabling provision," Mr Mukherjee said while speaking at a Leadership Summit.
The BJP is adamant that it will settle for nothing but a rollback of the decision to allow 51% FDI in multi-brand retail - it wants a vote in Parliament on the government's decision because it says the government is not in a majority on this matter. But Commerce Minister Anand Sharma claims that two BJP-ruled states, Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh, had told a parliamentary panel recently that they wanted FDI in retail. Speaking exclusively to NDTV on the show The Buck Stops Here, the Commerce Minister said Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh had given the nod for allowing global players in retail in their states, in feedback to a House Panel headed by BJP leader Shanta Kumar as recently as in the past one year. A third BJP-ruled state, Karnataka, he said, was non-committal, but did not oppose it. Mr Sharma said the government has this on record.
"In the Parliamentary Standing Committee, some of the BJP states - and it's a matter of record, Parliamentary records don't lie, and nor are they manufactured by the government of the day - they have asked for it. I can name two states specifically, that's Gujarat and Himachal. The state, second, where I come from. Even BJP-ruled Karnataka was non-committal, they never opposed it. And you can access the report," he said.
Mr Sharma's remarks add a new dimension to the controversy that has engulfed Parliament, leaving it paralyzed.
A rebuttal came quickly from Himachal Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal, who said "We are denying that...this is not on record...let him say this...we oppose FDI in retail as this will affect small shopkeepers and hit employment opportunities. The UPA government is not taking consensus, they are forcing it on states."
Reacting to Anand Sharma's claim that BJP-ruled states Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh had supported FDI in retail, senior BJP leader Shanta Kumar said he has spoken to Chief Ministers of both the states and they have reiterated that they are opposed to the move. "This issue must be discussed in Parliament. We want the government to discuss this issue under the rule we demand," he said.
Among the top leaders of the BJP who have spoken out against the government's decision to allow global players like Walmart and Tesco to open shop in India, is Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, who had tweeted earlier this week, "My stand is the same as that of my party BJP, which is in the interest of the nation (opposing the FDI in retail)."
Meanwhile, Mr Sharma has also said the policy on FDI was drafted carefully in deference to the wishes of Mamata Banerjee, the Chief Minister of West Bengal, whose participation in the UPA is critical to the government's survival. Ms Banerjee has been opposing FDI in retail - like the Opposition, she says it will hurt farmers and traders. In an attempt to ensure she supports the government in a vote in Parliament, the Prime Minister and the Commerce Minister have stressed that states are entitled to ignore the new rules in FDI. As the UPA does the math it is aware that losing an FDI vote in Parliament will not mean the fall of the government. But it will be embarrassing and the government will be seen to have lost moral authority.
Speaking at a public function in Delhi today, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee blamed the opposition and "narrow politics" for the stand-off.
"You can exercise your authority within your territorial limit, but don't stand in the way of the others who want to implement it. Therefore, let there be an enabling provision and this is an enabling provision," Mr Mukherjee said while speaking at a Leadership Summit.
The BJP is adamant that it will settle for nothing but a rollback of the decision to allow 51% FDI in multi-brand retail - it wants a vote in Parliament on the government's decision because it says the government is not in a majority on this matter. But Commerce Minister Anand Sharma claims that two BJP-ruled states, Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh, had told a parliamentary panel recently that they wanted FDI in retail. Speaking exclusively to NDTV on the show The Buck Stops Here, the Commerce Minister said Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh had given the nod for allowing global players in retail in their states, in feedback to a House Panel headed by BJP leader Shanta Kumar as recently as in the past one year. A third BJP-ruled state, Karnataka, he said, was non-committal, but did not oppose it. Mr Sharma said the government has this on record.
"In the Parliamentary Standing Committee, some of the BJP states - and it's a matter of record, Parliamentary records don't lie, and nor are they manufactured by the government of the day - they have asked for it. I can name two states specifically, that's Gujarat and Himachal. The state, second, where I come from. Even BJP-ruled Karnataka was non-committal, they never opposed it. And you can access the report," he said.
Mr Sharma's remarks add a new dimension to the controversy that has engulfed Parliament, leaving it paralyzed.
A rebuttal came quickly from Himachal Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal, who said "We are denying that...this is not on record...let him say this...we oppose FDI in retail as this will affect small shopkeepers and hit employment opportunities. The UPA government is not taking consensus, they are forcing it on states."
Reacting to Anand Sharma's claim that BJP-ruled states Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh had supported FDI in retail, senior BJP leader Shanta Kumar said he has spoken to Chief Ministers of both the states and they have reiterated that they are opposed to the move. "This issue must be discussed in Parliament. We want the government to discuss this issue under the rule we demand," he said.
Among the top leaders of the BJP who have spoken out against the government's decision to allow global players like Walmart and Tesco to open shop in India, is Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, who had tweeted earlier this week, "My stand is the same as that of my party BJP, which is in the interest of the nation (opposing the FDI in retail)."
Meanwhile, Mr Sharma has also said the policy on FDI was drafted carefully in deference to the wishes of Mamata Banerjee, the Chief Minister of West Bengal, whose participation in the UPA is critical to the government's survival. Ms Banerjee has been opposing FDI in retail - like the Opposition, she says it will hurt farmers and traders. In an attempt to ensure she supports the government in a vote in Parliament, the Prime Minister and the Commerce Minister have stressed that states are entitled to ignore the new rules in FDI. As the UPA does the math it is aware that losing an FDI vote in Parliament will not mean the fall of the government. But it will be embarrassing and the government will be seen to have lost moral authority.
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