Chandigarh headlines

IRDA Bill passedAfter several rounds of talks stretching late into the night on Wednesday, and spilling well beyond even this morning's p...

IRDA Bill passed
After several rounds of talks stretching late into the night on Wednesday, and spilling well beyond even this morning8217;s power breakfast, the Lok Sabha today finally cleared the much-awaited Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority IRDA Bill.

So touch-and-go were the negotiations over the amendments proposed by the Congress that just 80 minutes into the formal voting, the Priyaranjan Das Munshi told The Indian Express that the party was going to oppose the Bill. Around 3:30 pm, the buzz in the press gallery was that the Bill wouldn8217;t be put to vote.

Understandably, when the Bill was eventually voted upon, leaders of both parties, Atal Behari Vajpayee and Sonia Gandhi, fumbled, unsure of which way to vote. While Vajpayee actually filled up the green side of the slip or voted against his own government the first time around, Sonia too had to ask for another slip, to correct her faux pas.

The day began with a breakfast at the house of Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pramod Mahajan where Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha tried to hammer out the final compromise. At one point, with the Congress insisting that all its demands be met, including one which stated that insurance firms would have to invest at least 75 per cent of their earnings in government securities, Sinha even spoke to Vajpayee to convey the lack of progress.

Eventually, however, with Congress ex-MP Murli Deora putting everything into getting the Bill through, the party agreed to let this one go 8212; the Bill has kept this limit at 50 per cent, though the Insurance Regulatory Authority will theoretically be free to increase or decrease this.

With the Bill through, Home Minister L. K. Advani was seen congratulating Sonia Gandhi and thanking her for her constructive co-operation. Sinha said the insurance business would grow from about two per cent of the GDP now to 4.5 per cent by 2002-03. The Bill was passed by a voice vote, with the Left parties walking out.

Enthused by the co-operation, and the apparent sorting out of differences with the Congress over the inclusion of Rajiv Gandhi8217;s name in the Bofors chargesheet, Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha quickly moved the FEMA and money laundering bills, which together will replace the outdated FERA bill. Late in the evening, these too were passed with barely 30 members present, and many proposed amendments left by the wayside, with their proposers not present in the House.

Story continues below this ad

A small hitch still remains, though. Congress MP in the Rajya Sabha, and a strong opponent of the Bill, Vyalar Ravi, says he will move an amendment in the Rajya Sabha, asking that the Bill state that neither LIC nor GIC will be privatised, or its shares sold to the private sector. Ravi claims he has got Sonia Gandhi8217;s permission to do so. In which case, the passing of the Insurance bill may still be a bit dicey. CPM MP Basudev Acharya claimed he was confident the Bill would be defeated in the Rajya Sabha.

Today, however, with the euphoric MPs congratulating each other 8212; Murli Deora was the most sought-after man for his role 8212; few even entertained such doubts.