BJP asks PM to clear his stand over FDI

Pune, Dec 4 (ANI): Demanding an immediate rollback of the decision to approve foreign direct investment in multi-brand retail, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Sunday said Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh should clear his stand on the issue.

"The Bharatiya Janata Party wants the Prime Minister to clear his stand and status over FDI in retail. The FDI in retail decision should immediately be rolled back and we want the Prime Minister to come in front of the people and tell the status, as people are angry, they are on the streets and his allies are angry with him and opposition parties are angry over the decision," BJP spokesperson Shahnawaz Hussain told mediapersons here.

"The Prime Minister, in the meeting with youth Congress, presents a different view point and later we come to know from his sources that he has suspended the issue of FDI in retail, so the whole nation wants the Prime minister to clear his stand over the FDI issue," he added.

Hussain urged the ruling Congress Party to stop worrying about international companies and think about the people of India.

"The Bharatiya Janata Party wants the Congress Party to clear its stand and immediately the party should announce that they are rolling back the decision and it is for the benefit of the country. The government should worry about their own country rather than worrying about the international companies," he said.

The government had last month approved 51 percent FDI in multi-brand retail, paving the entry of firms such as Wal-Mart and Carrefour into one of the world's largest untapped markets.

The new policy, seen as one of the most important government economic reforms in years, may commit supermarkets to strict local sourcing requirements and minimum investment levels aimed at protecting jobs.

Hussain further hit out at the Congress Party over the alleged involvement of External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna in Karnataka illegal mining case.

"In the Karnataka illegal mining case, the politically motivated Congress party has to answer the question over S M Krishna's involvement in the case. S M Krishna is the government's minister and the chief of Congress party (Sonia Gandhi) should clear her stand over Krishna's involvement in the mining case and the Bharatiya Janata Party wants to know her stand," he said.

A special lokayukta court in Bangalore had earlier on Saturday ordered investigation into a private complaint against three former Karnataka chief ministers, including External Affairs Minister SM Krishna, over allegations that they permitted illegal mining during their tenure.

The court asked the lokayukta police to conduct the probe against the three former chief ministers and submit the report on January 6.

The other two former chief ministers, who will be investigated, are Congress MP N. Dharam Singh and JD (S) MP H.D. Kumaraswamy.

The investigation will also focus on the alleged role of 11 senior bureaucrats in the mining scam, as the complainant social worker Abraham T.J., has accused all of them of causing huge losses to the exchequer. (ANI)