Parliament adjourned for sixth day, talks with opposition fail

New Delhi, Nov 29 (ANI): An aggressive and united opposition again forced both Houses of Parliament to adjourn without transacting any business for the sixth day of the Winter Session on Tuesday.

As soon the Lok Sabha met for the day, members rushed to the Well of the house demanding rollback of the decision to allow 51 per cent Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in multi- brand retail.

Members of Trinamool Congress were seen in the aisle shouting 'Cancel FDI in retail'. Members of the BJP, JD-U, BSP, Left parties, SP also raised slogans on the issue.

With members unrelenting, Speaker Meira Kumar first adjourned the house till noon and later for the day.

The Rajya Sabha also witnessed similar scenes. It was adjourned first till noon and later for the day after agitating BJP, BSP, JD-U and AIADMK members raised slogans against the government's FDI policy.

Earlier, an all-party meeting convened by the Centre to end the deadlock over FDI ended inconclusively with both the government and the opposition failing to reach a consensus over the issue.

The meeting was attended by top leaders, including Sushma Swaraj, LK Advani (BJP), Sharad Pawar (NCP), Sandeep Bandhopadhyay (TMC), Jayant Chowdhary (RLD), Anant Geete, Manohar Joshi (Shiv Sena), Pawan Kumar Bansal, Narayansami, Anand Sharma (Congress), Nageshwar Rao (TDP), Satish Mishra (BSP), Thambidurai, Maitran (AIADMK), T Shiva (DMK).

The government was forced into calling for the all-party meet after the opposition made it absolutely clear that it will not allow the Parliament to function till the government rolls back the FDI decision.

Last Thursday, the Cabinet approved 51 percent FDI in multi- brand retail, As per this move, many global retailers like Wal-Mart, Carrefour and Tesco can open outlets in India.

The Cabinet also decided to remove the 51 per cent cap on FDI in single brand format under which companies in food, lifestyle and sports business run stores. Owners of brands like Adidas, Gucci, Hermes, LVMH and Costa Coffee can have full ownership of business in India.

Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) or foreign investment refers to the net inflows of investment to acquire a lasting management interest in an enterprise operating in an economy other than that of the investor.

It is the sum of equity capital, reinvestment of earnings, other long-term capital, and short-term capital as shown in the balance of payments. It usually involves participation in management, joint venture, transfer of technology and expertise. (ANI)