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Journalism of Courage
Ever since the BJP-led NDA government hijacked its agenda of economic reforms, the Congress has been in a quandary. The challenge before the party is to redefine its stand on a policy it set in motion in 1991 8212; to reposition itself to stave off accusations of being the BJP8217;s B-team. But the 15-page approach paper finalised by the Pranab Mukherjee led 56-member Economic Introspection Group group, after nearly three months of deliberation, reaffirms that when it comes to matters economic, India8217;s main opposition party is still confused on which way to turn. It rules out a U-turn on reforms; it is unwilling to push full steam ahead too. It couches its ambivalence in talk of a quot;middle pathquot; 8212; speaking of the quot;Nehruvian pattern of mixed economyquot; and the quot;inevitability and irreversibilityquot; of reforms in the same breath. And predictably, it studiously avoids specifics, seeking safety in high rhetoric instead.
The release of the introspection group8217;s document takes place in a charged political context. With the Winter session of Parliament underway, unless the Congress behaves in a more Opposition-like fashion than it has so far, it may well find itself yielding more space to more belligerent players like Mulayam Singh8217;s Samajwadi Party. The Assembly elections to several crucial states are also due in a few months from now. From the Congress8217;s point of view, therefore, the call of the moment is to harness all the resources at its command and robustly take on the BJP. But the Congress8217;s inability to get its act together on crucial economic issues is likely to come in the way of any coherent combat strategy. The party8217;s stand on disinvestment best captures its predicament. Unwilling to give the impression that it could be going back on the agenda it started in the 90s, and yet eager to distance itself from the BJP8217;s initiatives, the Congress weakly seizes upon quot;modalitiesquot;, demanding a quot;White Paperquot; and theestablishment of a parliamentary committee on disinvestment. On subsidies, again, it evades a clear stand, repudiating Manmohan Singh8217;s distinction between merit and non-merit subsidies as part of its gambit to appear pro-poor and, yet, at the same time shifting the onus on the government by demanding a discussion paper on the matter. The only area, perhaps, where the party has taken a clear stand is on agriculture. Buoyed by the momentum it built up in Parliament on the issue, the Congress has for the first time expressed itself against foreign direct investment in agriculture.
