BJP Statement on EU-India FTA

The BJP, India’s biggest opposition party has urged the Indian government  not to proceed with the Bilateral Trade  and Investment Agreement(BITA) being presently negotiated between EU and India without political consensus.

As stated by the BJP’s spokesperson Shri Prakash Javadekar on the EU-India Summit

BJP demands –

1. All party meeting to discuss FTAs /CECAs  in general and EU –India FTA in particular.
2. A comprehensive debate in parliament on all FTAs entered and especially on EU-India FTA.
3. Immediate release of negotiating text and impact assessment studies of FTAs / CECAs particularly EU-India.

See the press statement below:

Press: BJP National Spokesperson Shri Prakash Javadekar on the EU-India Summit

Monday, 06 February 2012
Press Statement issued by BJP National Spokesperson & MP

Shri Prakash Javadekar on the EU-India Summit

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) urges the government of India not to go ahead on the Bilateral Trade and Investment Agreement (BTIA) being currently negotiated between the European Union and India with undue haste and without political consensus. Given the Euro zone crisis and the expansive nature of the Agreement, India should not bind itself to unnecessary commitments without being assured of significant gains from the Agreement. The BJP calls upon the government to act with due caution during the EU-India Summit that is to be held in New Delhi from the 10th of February 2012 and not make any legal or political commitments on the FTA without prior consultations with all political parties.

The proposed FTA with EU would result in reduction/removal of import duties on a large number of products i.e. more than 90 per cent of total tariff lines. This includes duty cuts on sensitive agricultural products that can threaten a massive number of agricultural livelihoods. The government should be wary of making commitments in agriculture because the EU gives its farmers a huge subsidy which reduces the cost of European agricultural products and will help them dump these products in India.  The industrial sector will also see very limited gains and will face losses in many subsectors, most notably in the car industry. This would endanger most needed job creation in manufacturing sector. EU also wants removal/ lowering of India’s export measures which India uses to maintain food security and access to raw material. The intellectual property rights chapters proposed in this FTA goes beyond the TRIPS Agreement, which will also give European companies considerable market power. Further, EU is also demanding liberalistaion of FDI through FTA and thus establishes linkage between trade and investment, which was successfully opposed by India during the WTO Cancun Ministerial Conference in 2003. These will also undermine the space of the government to enact policies to redress development inequalities.

News reports also suggest that EU is pressurising India to liberalise several sensitive areas where India’s current economic and social conditions make it difficult to commit. For example the EU has insisted on access to agricultural sectors like such as dairy, poultry, cereals, wine and spirits and to sectors where infant industries thrive; such as cars, car components, food processing, and several service sectors. The EU wants India’s commitments in retail where millions of small businesses are dependent. The EU also wants India to open up sensitive areas such as banking, insurance, postal services, and energy. The EU has also stepped up pressures to give European companies full access to the government procurement market. This is especially dangerous because this can take away the government’s ability to give MSMEs, women, scheduled castes and tribes and other marginalised groups preferential treatment.

Further, the BJP demands;

All party meeting to discuss FTAs /CECAs  in general and EU –India FTA in particular.

A comprehensive debate in parliament on all FTAs entered and especially on EU-India FTA.

Immediate release of negotiating text and impact assessment studies of FTAs / CECAs particularly EU-India.

Source: www.bjp.org