Parliament Session 2012- Black Money and Lokpal

SYNOPSIS ON WHY THE BUDGET IS IMPORTANT AND ITS IMPLICATION    before we go any further lets see the strength in the Parliament

Congress               206      Outside Support 
Trinamol                 19       BSP  21
DMK                       18           SP 22
NCP                         09                 ---
Others                     15                 43
                               -----                  ---
                               267
                               -----
Total Support available for Non- Contentious Issue - 267 +43 = 310
In a Crisis Mode Congress needs just 272.


The economy slow down experienced today by our country apart from Global Slow down the other contributing factors are

• Corruptions , Scandals, Lack of Honesty, Compulsions of Coalition Politics, Policy Paralysis resulting in huge fiscal deficit and huge Inflation. 

NEED OF THE HOUR

• Need for Fiscal Consolidation if Inflation is to be contained.
• Shun out and bite the bullet ignoring any Federal Issue's or Coalition compulsion and get going with reforms
• Reforms on FDI in retail for Multi-Brand needed no Cabinet decision as is only an executive decision.
• Reforms on Tax- GDP ratio and cutting down wasteful expenditure in Populous policies like MGNREGA , Food Security, NHRM (close to 7000 cr been swallowed by Politicians)
• Invest on Agricultural reforms and Higher Education
• Reforms on GST (though it needed to be debated between the Centre and the States)
• Lokpal Bill
• Black Money - Unearthing from all tax havens

21/05/2012 Fad End of the Session what did we get , Yeah a big "Nothing"

On the Black Money white Paper tabled which had little or nothing for the Progress of retrieving it from the Tax havens across the Globe!

• It did not provide the Estimate or the Quantity of the Money stashed! 
• It advocated for Strict punishment ? for the Offenders ! Is it a joke
• Well as far as Lokpal they had recommended it to the Select Committee for further delibrations! Guess what thats called as "Cold Storage"

And what was the quality time spent? Well they had contributed heavily on the Cartoon Issue for one full Week! Is it not high time The highest Judicial office steps in and raps the Govt in wasting the Public Money and time!

The much awaited Finance budget  presented by Mr Pranab Mukerjee probably for the last time. 


WHAT DID WE GET

• Tax burden for individuals to come down but   Many services and goods to cost more - Evens Out
•  Big Cars, Imported bicycles, Cigarettes, bidis and few imported jewellery to cost more - So what?
• Boost for capital markets ,  Capital boost to financial and infrastructure sectors  - Good One
• Direct Taxes Code (DTC) at earliest; GST network to be operational by August 2012 
• Tax relief for stressed sectors: Sectors like agriculture, infrastructure, mining, railways, roads, civil aviation, manufacturing, health and nutrition, and environment to get duty relief - Good One
• FDI on Pipe line - hope it gets through including Aviation. 
• Defence services get Rs. 1,93,407 crore 
• Slashes fund for MGNREGA = Good one ! 
• Food Security most likely to be put in the back burner !- Good One
• Rajiv Gandhi Equity Saving Scheme ? Why no Shaving Scheme for Rahul Gandhi.
• Black Money and Corruption would bring out white Paper - Ghost theory 

Overall the Budget is good road map for further Inflation with all SOnia Scheme not wished away. I curse myself for once believing that Pranab would rise above than a Politician and look into the Nation's Interest. Alas I had let myself down for believing in Pranab! He has just drafted the Budget keeping in my mind not to rock the Congress boat which has a big hole. Plug-ins SP might replace TMC ? to save the boat one needs to wait !

Railway Budget
The least one would have expected was trouble in the Railway budget, Many Political pundits thought this Railway budget would go through as smooth as silk, Yet it turned out to be a major snowballing effect in the coalition . Added to the Woes of UPA-2 there is  Mamta's testing Congress time and again




SYNOPSIS ON WHY THE BUDGET IS IMPORTANT AND ITS IMPLICATION


With all the State Elections are Over the Focus now Shifts to the Parliament for the Budgetary Session. This is as important to the Nation as it is to the Congress led Government. With the worst drubbing results Congress would not have imagined even in the dream, it has put "The First family" in a fix.  This is no exaggerated statement, as in the present scenario assuming the Congress lives up to the full term, it is highly unlikely Rahul could go to the election with 8 years of Anti-Incumbency factor. Not to mention the personal drubbing under the guidance of Digvijay Singh, Rahul has been consistently chasing defeat from Bihar, Punjab, UP and possible MP and Gujarat. He would do more than handful to BJP if he along with Digvijay start campaigning in MP and Gujarat sooner than later. 


Shifting to the Budgetary Session the Congress has hands full in combating  not only the Opposition but also it own Allies. Before we go any further there would be more than 5 Regional Parties willing to go for a snap Poll (General Elections) and not to mention Gujarat always ready for Poll even at the wake of Sleep.

This puts both Congress and BJP on a defensive as both are  equally  incompetent to face the General Election at the given stage. Though BJP can ride on for a very few reasons

• Anti Incumbency
• AIADMK, JDU, SAD, BJD are well prepared and nothing to loose for a snap Poll 
• TMC UPA ally is too well prepared and openly flaunted

To Neutralize the negativity hovering its head Congress needs to do its best and pull up its act together by first taking its own Ally into board, then have consensus with the Opposition and look for passing SANE and important bills than the Pet Scheme so called "Populous Bills".

We have no doubt that Mr Pranab Mukerjee would burn the midnight Oil to bail out Congress only to a certain extent, but given the scenario Congress needs to do more to survive atleast another 6 months which is unlikely, though I could be  pessimist .

There are as many as 50 Bills that are to be Passed in the Parliament and these Bills include from Agriculture, HRD,  Commerce and finance, Science (Energy and Mines), Security (Law & Strategic affairs), Transport and Constitutional Amendments.

Apart from the Main Budget Presentation some of the bills that are more discussed are

• Lokpal Bill       -  Though passed in Loksabha pending @ Rajya sabha due to Transgression of     Center in the State Domain. One of the reason for the Congress failure in the State election was trying to hood wink the Nation in one guise or the other.   

                                                     PRS Analysis of the Bill as Passed by Lok Sabha is available here  

We'd seen the Congress giving  Lokpal A Quick Burial in Rajya Sabha 

• FDI in retail    - Though this bill dosent have consensus there are varied Opinion not only with Political Parties but also the likes of ICIER, CII,FiCII  but whatever said and done on this Bill it is being stalled as usual by CPI and a few regional Parties surprisingly by BJP which authored the Bill which amounts to show the double standards of BJP in certain Issue. BJP needs to put the Nation's Interest first and help the Nation from complete Economical breakdown. Though many of the Parties cites it is a Transgression of Center in the State Domain.

         FDI an Overview 

• Food Security- Transgression of Center in the State Domain   (Sonia Pet Project) This bill dosen't even need to be reviewed as it lacks Scientifically proven  data to claim the benefit of the Bill. Since it is Sonia's Populous Bill I hope it goes faster to the grave before giving birth. In no way saying Food security is not needed,but only not under the  drafted bill by NAC and Sonia. Let the centre follow the best Model shown in India by TN which is followed in Kerala and Gujarat.          Sonia's Fiasco in Food Security

• NCTC  -Though the move was welcomed by Arun Jaitley immediately after the Terror attack on Mumbai but now going back on words stating it is a Transgression of Center in the State Domain , the only reason one could derive at BJP double standard is its soft corner for the Outlawed Sangh group which had taken terror in its hand. No matter what religion the Party is based upon the last thing is to support Terror in any form and not to forget Terror does not have Religion and color. This is not only  to BJP but to People like P.Chidambaram ( who calls Saffron Terror) , Digvijay singh (sympathiser) for Indian Mujahideen , Salman Kursheed ( who felt so bad on Batla House encounter asking for a re probe) above all Sonia ( wept for the killing of terrorist). On the Interest of the nation the Home ministry does need to bring in the bill to tackle the growing Menace of the terror group with so many sleeper cells operating in the length and breadth of the country of course he needs to bring all opposition into board and work it out.          NCTC-Synopsis

• The Higher Education and Research Bill, 2011  - Kapil Sibal .The Bill seeks to establish the National Commission for Higher Education and Research (NCHER)  to facilitate determination and maintenance of standards of higher education and research in all areas except agricultural education.The functions of NCHER include (a) promotion of autonomy in educational institutions; (b) promotion of a curriculum framework with specific reference to emerging or inter-disciplinary fields of knowledge; (c) promotion of coordination between educational  institutions and industry for innovation; and (d) taking measures to enhance access and inclusion in higher education. Here again there are regional parties likely to Oppose as trangression on the States domain

• CITIZENS CHARTER The Right of Citizens for Time Bound Delivery of Goods and Services and Redressal of their Grievances Bill, 2011, the Bill seeks to confer on every citizen the right to time bound delivery of specified goods and services and provide a mechanism for  grievance redressal. This bill might find an easy passage.

• National Sports bill- Among some of the Draft Bills that are awaiting to be passed  this bill introduced by Ajay Maken deserves to be passed putting an end to all Politicians running the sports in this country, the only Unsung leader in congress Maken faces severe opposition not from outside but well within UPA.

•  The Judicial Standards & Accountability Bill, tries to lay down enforceable standards of conduct for judges.  It also requires judges to declare details of their and their family members' assets and liabilities.  Importantly, it  creates mechanisms to allow any person to complain against judges on grounds of misbehaviour or incapacity. The Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Amendment Bill, 2011 was introduced on December 29, 2011 by the Minister of Home Affairs.  The Bill was referred to the Standing Committee on Home Affairs on January 13, 2012. The Committee is expected to table its report by March 31, 2012.

But we all know the first half of the Session always goes wasted without any concrete decision and the later half as usual we find Parliamentary Gimmicks of Walk-outs, abstaining, Shouting and disruption. It is only an humongous task for the UPA to take the right step and bail out the country from the current crisis in working tandem with the opposition, if it is not able to do so blame it on the BJP dissolve the Parliament and go for a Snap poll after all Congress does not have anything to loose.