Giving in to Opposition pressure over the Walmart lobbying issue, the government on Tuesday said it was “open to an inquiry”, without elaborating on the nature of the investigation. For the second day, Parliament proceedings were disrupted and eventually adjourned, as Opposition parties joined hands, demanding a high-level probe into the matter.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) demanded a “time-bound judicial probe”, while the Left, Samajwadi Party (SP), the Trinamool Congress, the All India Anna Dravida Munnettra Kazhagam (AIADMK), the Janata Dal (United), and the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) pressed for a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) inquiry. They linked the disclosures made by the $447-billion American retail chain to the US Senate that it had spent $25 million on lobbying and a company-led investigation into corruption related to many markets, including India. Part of the lobbying money was paid towards gaining “enhanced market access in India”. This comes just days after the government won the vote on foreign direct investment (FDI) in retail in both the Houses of Parliament.
Parliamentary Affairs minister Kamal Nath tried to assuage BJP, saying in the Rajya Sabha: “We have also learnt about Walmart’s disclosures; the government views this with concern and has no hesitation in having an inquiry. We want to get to the facts of the matter.” He added: “The government is not running away on this concern. We are open to a discussion. This is not a matter of concern for the Opposition alone, it is that for the government, too. It is for all of us. We are open to a probe.” A similar statement was made by the leader of the Lok Sabha, Sushilkumar Shinde.
Deputy Leader of the Opposition Ravi Shankar Prasad, rallied around the Opposition on a common platform, emphasising “lobbying is a form of bribe”. He was soon joined by SP and the Left parties — all stressing the “seriousness of the issue”. CPI(M) leader Sitaram Yechury, describing the matter as “something unacceptable”, said he would move a notice for a short-duration discussion.
Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi met against the backdrop of Parliament disruptions over the issues of Walmart lobbying and quota in promotions and discussed ways to resolve the logjam. They were reportedly briefed by Nath. Finance Minister P Chidambaram and Shinde, also part of the Congress core group, were present in the meeting at the Prime Minister’s Office in Parliament.
Industry representatives continued to be critical of the Opposition move. Confederation of Indian Industry Director-General Chandrajit Banerjee told Business Standard: “In India, we don’t have a law on lobbying. So, there’s nothing legal or illegal about it.” He added “advocacy” was used in the country quite freely. When asked to comment specifically on the Walmart case and whether there was any merit in linking lobbying disclosures with the corruption/bribery probe, Banerjee said “we need clarity and details on the corruption”, without which a comment was not possible.
Ficci President R V Kanoria, also the chairman of the Kanoria group, argued: “They (political parties) must look at what is good for the nation, rather than what is good for the parties.” He said he was not in a position to sit in the judgement seat on Walmart.
When contacted, the US Chamber of Commerce spokesperson said: “We are not able to provide any comment at this time.”
