Govt ready for probe into Walmart lobbying

The government on Wednesday offered to hold an inquiry into allegations of payment made by US retail giant Walmart in India but it did not cut much ice with the Opposition, which demanded a time-bound probe by either a Joint Parliamentary Committee or the judiciary. The issue of Walmart making disclosures to the US Senate that it had spent $25 million over four years for various lobbying activities, including for gaining access to Indian markets, continued to rock Parliament, which was disrupted for the second day today. "The government views this with utmost concern and has no hesitation in ordering an inquiry on this as it concerns payments made in India too," Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kamal Nath said in the Rajya Sabha.