FDI-in-retail to come out of closet after polls

Rahul support stiffens govt spine

Singh’s remarks came a day after Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said in Farrukhabad (Uttar Pradesh) that the Congress-led UPA government was determined to implement the decision. The Centre had faced a serious embarrassment as its Cabinet decision to allow FDI in multi-brand retail was suspended in the face of strong opposition from its allies such as Trinamool Congress and DMK. The Opposition parties stalled Parliament for several days in protest against the decision. The prime minister, during his interactions with journalists on his way back from Moscow, said his government was committed to reforms as before, while also addressing the political compulsions.

“Given the nature of coalition (politics), the fact that we as the Congress Party do not have the majority we have to move at a pace whereby all our allies can be on the same page.

“That certainly restricts our options, but we are hopeful that some essential reforms can still be pushed through after we have engaged our allies in a constructive, productive dialogue,” Singh said. On revisiting FDI in retail, Singh said there was a need to evolve a broad-based consensus and the Government would work tow­a­rds it.

“It’s my hope that once the elections to the various state Assemblies, which are in the offing are over, all political parties can sit together, and we will then explore with them the possibilities of implementing the decision which is placed on hold,” he added.

Rahul Gandhi, addressing a series of meetings in Uttar Pradesh, said FDI in retail would be of help to farmers who could save their produce from rotting by taking advantage of cold storage facilities that would come with FDI, and get the right price.

At a meeting in Farruk­habad, the largest potato growing district in the country, Gandhi said 60 per cent of vegetables go waste and FDI would provide a chance to the farmers to directly sell their produce.

On the fourth day of his five-day mass contact programme here, Rahul said: “farmers are facing problems as 60 per cent of vegetables go waste.. we brought FDI in retail so that they could sell their produce directly. But the opposition stalled the move as they are “anti-farmer”, he said.