Reform Bills to fall prey to political storm, say experts

The political uncertainty following Trinamool Congress (TMC) chief and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s threat to pull out of the UPA government has put the prospects of various reform Bills in jeopardy, say experts.

At least eight important Bills such as pension reforms, land acquisition, forward contracts, banks, insurance, direct taxes and indirect taxes, and Companies’ Bill could be affected.

However, non-legislative reform measures are unlikely to be affected, say experts.

The Forward Contracts Regulation Act (Amendment) Bill has been deferred by the Cabinet thrice due to opposition by the Trinamool Congress.

The Bill would face further problems if the West Bengal party carries out its threat of parting ways with the UPA government, experts say.

 

Two days ago, Finance Minister P Chidambaram had expressed keenness to accommodate the views of Parliament’s Standing Committee headed by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Yashwant Sinha on the banking, insurance and pension bills to get them passed. That, too, looks dim in the changed political scenario.

“Right now, there seems no consensus on the details. So, it is quite unlikely that we see these bills passed anytime soon,” says Ravi Srivastava, professor, Jawaharlal Nehru University. According to him, the BJP clearly does not want to give the government any space to act.

Although the BJP has backed the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority bill, its political context has now changed, experts point out.

The two tax legislations— Goods and Services Tax and Direct Taxes Code—will also need the support of the BJP. Besides, the Constitution Amendment Bill to enable rollout of the GST requires consent of at least half of states.

This requires two-third votes in support of the Bill in each houses.

That would be difficult, as crisis managers of the Congress struggle hard for a simple majority, says an expert.