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Journalism of Courage
The findings of a one-man panel set up to probe retail giant Walmart8217;s lobbying activities may soon go to the Union Cabinet,which would also look into suggestions made by various ministries in this regard. Pursuant to submission of this probe report,an Action Taken Report ATR has been prepared after taking into account suggestions made by the Corporate Affairs Ministry,the Ministry of External Affairs and the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion DIPP.
The ATR has been sent by the Corporate Affairs Ministry for the Union Cabinet8217;s approval and it would be tabled in the Parliament during the next session,along with the findings of the probe panel,sources said. While the contents of the ATR were not immediately known,there are talks about Indian government preparing to frame guidelines for lobbying activities. Lobbying is legal in the US and many other countries,where concerned companies and their registered lobbyists need to make quarterly disclosures about such activities. However,India has no such guidelines in place.
Among others,the committee also looked into Walmart8217;s lobbying activities with government officials in India. In the meantime,Walmart recently announced a sudden exit of Raj Jain,head of its Indian venture with Bharti group. This committee was set up after a political uproar over disclosure about Walmart8217;s lobbying among the US lawmakers since 2008 for facilitating its entry into the Indian market. Walmart spent a total amount of USD 6.13 million about Rs 33 crore on lobbying for various issues,including on 8220;discussions related to FDI in India8221;,during 2012,as per the US Congressional records. It had been lobbying on India- related issues since at least 2008 and continued to do so till at least first quarter of 2013. However,Walmart halted its lobbying with the American lawmakers on India-specific issues during the last quarter ended June 30,as per its latest quarter disclosure reports.
