Best of BS Opinion: Rising fiscal fears, Maharashtra politics, and more

Here's a selection of opinion pieces from today's Business Standard

The economy may be slowing down but it is not in recession, Nirmala Sitharaman said during a heated debate in Parliament. Fair point, but there is something amiss when a finance minister posits a negative argument such as this as a positive for her government. What is more, a Reuters poll of economists suggests that the quarter ended September is likely to grow at 4 per cent, down from 5 per cent in the previous quarter and 7 per cent in the same quarter in 2018. Tackling this slowdown and coping with its fiscal impact dominate the opinion pages today. Kanika Datta sums up the views.

So how should the government revive demand? By spending more or by stimulating demand via tax cuts? Saral Bachaspati weighs the pros and cons here

It is no secret now that poor revenue collections have left Central and state finances in a mess. The top edit suggests that the government should conduct a comprehensive review of the fiscal position in the next few weeks to enable policymakers to redraw the fiscal road map. Read it here

The recent political drama in Maharashtra shows that no party is better than the BJP at using the ethical framework for political advantage, says Aakar Patel here

Beijing’s face-off with Hong Kong holds lessons for “strong” governments around the world, says the second edit here 

QUOTE OF THE DAY
 

‘Now we are realising that people were frightened with the NRC issue. We could not make them understand the issue properly’

-Kamal Chandra Sarkar, defeated BJP candidate in the Kaliaganj bypoll in West Bengal