<p>Amid a political row over corporate lobbying, laid bare in the Niira Radia case, the Centre is working to define the word “lobbying” to differentiate between legitimate and illegitimate activities. <br /><br /></p>.<p>The Ministry of Corporate Affairs is likely to have a consultation with various sections of the society and invite comments from the public before taking a final call on the matter, sources said.<br /><br />The issue of lobbying emerged after several companies in India hired firms headed by Radia for lobbying with the government for projects. The issue again cropped up last year after US retail giant Walmart claimed that it had spent crores for lobbying in India. <br /><br />Lobbying is legal in over 13 countries, including the US and the UK, where companies and their registered lobbyists are required to make prescribed disclosures about such activities. Lobbying is officially not acknowledged in India, despite companies hiring agencies to lobby for them. This has been widely prevalent in the defence sector since ages, highlighted by many purchase scams including the buying of Bofors guns, which demonstrated a strong middlemen-politician nexus.<br /><br />Corporate Affairs Minister Sachin Pilot had said lobbying needs to be defined to differentiate it from influencing the policymakers through illegal means.<br /><br />“As a policymaker, I welcome every input and it is absolutely fine if such inputs help in putting in place a right policy. But when you adopt means to influence policymakers in ways that are illegal, that is not lobbying and that can not be permitted,” Pilot had said.<br />The issue of making lobbying legitimate came up after the government constituted a one-man probe panel to look into Walmart's lobbying activities following a political furore over the issue last year. There were suggestions from several quarters that India should have a law modelled on the lines of Lobbying Disclosures Act in the US.<br />The government-appointed probe panel, headed by former Chief Justice of Punjab and Haryana High Court Mukul Mudgal, had submitted its report to the Corporate Affairs Ministry on May 18. The report is pending before the Cabinet, which may take it up for consideration soon, sources said.<br /><br />However, the probe findings remained inconclusive on whether the US retail giant violated Indian laws by carrying out lobbying to enter the country’s lucrative retail market. <br /><br />Meanwhile, Walmart has resumed lobbying activities with American lawmakers on matters related to FDI in India. The retailer spent $1.5 million on about 50 specific issues, including those related to the Indian market in the July-September quarter of 2013. The world’s largest retailer has been maintaining that it made all disclosures as per the prevailing regulations in the US.</p>
<p>Amid a political row over corporate lobbying, laid bare in the Niira Radia case, the Centre is working to define the word “lobbying” to differentiate between legitimate and illegitimate activities. <br /><br /></p>.<p>The Ministry of Corporate Affairs is likely to have a consultation with various sections of the society and invite comments from the public before taking a final call on the matter, sources said.<br /><br />The issue of lobbying emerged after several companies in India hired firms headed by Radia for lobbying with the government for projects. The issue again cropped up last year after US retail giant Walmart claimed that it had spent crores for lobbying in India. <br /><br />Lobbying is legal in over 13 countries, including the US and the UK, where companies and their registered lobbyists are required to make prescribed disclosures about such activities. Lobbying is officially not acknowledged in India, despite companies hiring agencies to lobby for them. This has been widely prevalent in the defence sector since ages, highlighted by many purchase scams including the buying of Bofors guns, which demonstrated a strong middlemen-politician nexus.<br /><br />Corporate Affairs Minister Sachin Pilot had said lobbying needs to be defined to differentiate it from influencing the policymakers through illegal means.<br /><br />“As a policymaker, I welcome every input and it is absolutely fine if such inputs help in putting in place a right policy. But when you adopt means to influence policymakers in ways that are illegal, that is not lobbying and that can not be permitted,” Pilot had said.<br />The issue of making lobbying legitimate came up after the government constituted a one-man probe panel to look into Walmart's lobbying activities following a political furore over the issue last year. There were suggestions from several quarters that India should have a law modelled on the lines of Lobbying Disclosures Act in the US.<br />The government-appointed probe panel, headed by former Chief Justice of Punjab and Haryana High Court Mukul Mudgal, had submitted its report to the Corporate Affairs Ministry on May 18. The report is pending before the Cabinet, which may take it up for consideration soon, sources said.<br /><br />However, the probe findings remained inconclusive on whether the US retail giant violated Indian laws by carrying out lobbying to enter the country’s lucrative retail market. <br /><br />Meanwhile, Walmart has resumed lobbying activities with American lawmakers on matters related to FDI in India. The retailer spent $1.5 million on about 50 specific issues, including those related to the Indian market in the July-September quarter of 2013. The world’s largest retailer has been maintaining that it made all disclosures as per the prevailing regulations in the US.</p>
