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WTO Should Revisit GATS to Exorcise Brexit-Trexit Demon
- Published on 07 July 2016
(Edited Image Courtesy: WTO)
Brexit + Trump = Trexit? So went the headline in an American publication named ‘Orange Country Register’. Similar headlines splashed across the global media have put crystal ball into an amazing spin.
Analysts are visualizing the likely impact of globalization on Britain's exit from European Union (EU), if it is followed by victory of Donald Trump in the forthcoming US Presidential race. Mr. Trump’s vocal opposition to foreign labour and free trade is a daily staple and thus requires no elaboration.
What impact this flux would have on negotiations over different trade issues at World Trade Organisation (WTO) and regional or bilateral free trade agreements (FTAs)? What would be the fate of protracted talks on deals such as India-EU Broad-based Trade and Investment Agreement (BTIA)? Would Brexit give wings to the UK-India Joint Economic and Trade Committee (JETCO)?
As both Brexit and Trexit (B&T) symbolize xenophobia including dislike for non-migrant, temporary workers, they are bound to impact services trade. The probability of B&T checkmating already muted mobility of labour is very high. Such supply of manpower comes under ‘Mode 4’ of General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS).
Replace FRBMA with debt ceiling law as mooted by Dr. Ambedkar
- Published on 02 July 2016
(Centre-State meeting on States' fiscal situation Sept 2002.Image Courtesy: PIB)
“If Parliament does not make a law, it is certainly the fault of Parliament and I should have thought it very difficult to imagine any future Parliament which will not pay sufficient or serious attention to this matter and enact a law. Under the article 268 (renumbered Article 292 in the finalized Constitution), I even concede that there might be an Annual Debt Act made by Parliament prescribing or limiting the power of the executive as to how much they can borrow within that year. ”
Dr. B. R. Ambedkar’s apprehension about Parliament’s failure has turned out to be true to the horror of voiceless future generations being burdened by borrowings resorted to be successive short-sighted regimes.
No doubt, Parliament belatedly enacted Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management Act 2003 (FRBMA). This law is not what is envisaged by Article 292. FRBMA is a toothless wonder that provides no penalty for its violation. The Executive’s actions under this law can’t be challenged in courts.
FRBMA is thus a far cry from what Dr. Ambedkar desired on 10th August 1949. It is poles apart from what certain members of Constituent Assembly unsuccessfully demanded for tightening the Article relating to government borrowings.
Unveil Ministerial Code to shun Maneka vs Javadekar type fights
- Published on 17 June 2016
(PM N. Modi chairing Ist cabinet meeting. Image Courtesy: PIB)
“Policies presented to Parliament and to the public must be the agreed policies of the Cabinet. Ministers cannot dissociate themselves from or repudiate the decisions of Cabinet or their Ministry colleagues unless they resign from the Ministry,” says Canada's governance mantra captioned ‘Open and Accountable Government’ released in November 2015.
It adds: “All members of the Ministry are collectively responsible for carrying out the government’s policies as established by the Cabinet. They are therefore expected to work in close consultation with their ministerial colleagues. This principle is the foundation of a key constitutional convention known as Cabinet solidarity.”
Public accountability votaries would expect Narendra Modi Government to unveil such an initiative to lend credence to #TransformingIndia campaign.
Had the Government laid down Canadian-type Ministerial Code of conduct (MCC) after its formation in May 2014, Minister for Women and Child Development, Maneka Gandhi, would have had to resign. She would have done this either before or after making wild allegations against Minister for Environment, Forest & Climate Change, Prakash Javadekar, and his Ministry on killing of wild animals.
The latter would have also faced music, if not exit from Cabinet, for violation of MCC in 2015 by utilizing Rs 20-lakh Toyota Fortuner for a few months in Delhi. The vehicle was bought by public enterprise SAIL for use by field staff of Forest Department in Odisha.
Time to Stop Judiciary’s Assault on Executive & Legislature
- Published on 02 June 2016
(Image Courtesy: PIB)
“The tradition of the Bar is never to tell a judge that he is wrong even when he is. A lawyer has to respectfully guide the judge out of his error,” stated the then Law Minister (LM) Ram Jethmalani in his letter dated 20th July 2000 to Chief Justice of India (CJI), Justice A.S. Anand.
Mr. Jethmalani tried to adhere to this tradition as a Cabinet Minister while clarifying that no convention existed for consulting CJI is the matter of appointment of Chairman of Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices Commission (MRTPC).
CJI reiterated his contention that consultation was the convention and he considered this issue as “one of principle”. And both the legal luminaries thus let the issue simmer into an unprecedented letters war.
This duel reflected the growing tension between the Judiciary and the Executive. This case was different from earlier bouts of friction between the Judiciary and the Executive that surfaced periodically right from the Raj days.
LM-CJI face-off has direct relevance to the latest concern voiced by President Pranab Mukherjee, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and other leaders over unbridled judicial activism.
Time is now ripe to take the turf war between the Judiciary and Executive-Legislative (JEL) duo from endless public discourse to its dignified resolution. This is a pre-requisite for fulfilling national dream for Acche Din for all.
Before discussing the way forward, we need to recollect more about LM-CJI face-off to put the issue in perspective. The show-down led Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee into seeking resignation of Mr. Jethmalani.