Jairam Ramesh's China comment lands him in trouble, meets PM
Last updated on: May 10, 2010 23:50 IST
Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday after he was asked to explain why he had made the uncalled-for comments earlier.
Ramesh had said that the policies of the India government (read Union home ministry and defence ministry) were "alarmist" and that the government was "paranoid" about "Chinese businessmen entering the industrial sector in India".
As he walked out of the meeting Ramesh refused to answer questions posed by the media.
Congress president Sonia Gandhi was reportedly very upset with the remarks and the union minister had to send a written explanation to her after she had refused to meet him.
Congress spokesperson Abhishek Singvi said the party did not endorse Ramesh's view, which has provided enough fodder to the opposition.
Earlier, the Bhartiya Janata Party launched a frontal attack on Ramesh and dubbed him as "Chinese agent".
"We outrightly condem Jairam Ramesh, who had gone on record to describe the Indian government's policies as 'alarmist'," Prakash Javdekar, BJP spokesperson said at a press conference in New Delhi .
Javdekar said the recent revelations of officially tapped conversations between a lobbyist and a minister confirmed the role of lobbyists within the power corridors.
"Utterances of Shri Jairam Ramesh establish that lobbyists also operate within the government," he said.
The BJP spokesperson wanted to know if the home ministry and security agencies had laid down security guidelines within the Cabinet.
"Can a Union minister rubbish these guidelines? Can he urge the Government of India to trade with particular companies? Can the environment minister disregard the 'Allocation of Business Rules' of the home ministry?" Javdekar wanted to know.
He described Ramesh's attempt to justify his comments as absurd.
"He has presented a bizarre logic to justify his lobbying. According to Ramesh, India would lose advantage and newfound love between the two countries in the post Copenhagen scenario. This is totally absurd. As a central minister he knows very well that there is no ban on Chinese equipment and more than 70 percent of telecom equipment comes from China. Thus his comments are not based on any genuine ground."
Arun Jaitley , leader of opposition in Rajya Sabha, said he was shocked when Ramesh rose up to raise questions about the attitude of the Union government towards Chinese business firms.
"He spoke like a Chinese agent," said Jaitley, who is leading a delegation to China that included Ramesh.
"Even Prakash Karat would not have gone to that extent," he said commenting on the Communist Party of India – Marxist leader.
Meanwhile, the Centre issued a clarification that it did not hold back the visas of Chinese businessmen and officials, and that they had been cleared in less than two hours to enable them to travel to India.
Some of the top ranking ministers described Ramesh as another Shashi Tharoor in the making. Tharoor had been asked to resign from the cabinet by the prime minister following his alleged involvement in the PIL controversy.
Two weeks later, President Pratibha Patil will be visiting China on an official visit.
Onkar Singh in New Delhi
PM ticks off Jairam Ramesh; BJP cries foul
Posted On: 10-May-2010 19:07:21 By: Aakash Singh Font Size:
PM ticks off Jairam Ramesh; BJP cries foul
New Delhi: Swinging into action to rein in his Cabinet colleague Jairam Ramesh, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today pulled up the Environment Minister for describing Home Ministry's policies on China as alarmist and paranoid.
Amid growing demands to sack the Minister for such a statement on foreign soil, the ruling Congress chose not to comment on the issue but said the Prime Minister had already taken up the matter with Mr Ramesh.
He should stop talking like that and not talk about other Ministries, Dr Singh told the Minister.
Mr Ramesh, who is in Beijing, was told by the Prime Minister not to talk about other Ministries, sources in the PMO said.
The Environment Minister had yesterday slammed the Home Ministry's security guidelines regarding import of Chinese equipment and termed India's policies as ''alarmist'' and ''paranoid''.
He is reported to have said that if India continued with such policies, it would lose the advantage and warmth of the ties between the countries achieved post Copenhagen summit.
Mr Ramesh's comments came in the backdrop of reports that India had prohibited the import of telecom equipment from Chinese firm Huawei for installation in border areas because of the security concerns. The sources said Dr Singh told Mr Ramesh to be mindful of what he was talking about on such sensitive matters on a foreign soil.
The Environment Minister is in Beijing to attend a climate change conference.
Embarrassed over Mr Ramesh's criticism of the Home Ministry, the Congress distanced itself from it.
Asked about Mr Ramesh criticising the Home Ministry for allegedly stalling import of Chinese telecom equipment and raising security concerns, Congress spokesman Shakeel Ahmed said the Minister himself could throw light on what he has said. Mr Ahmed said Mr Ramesh could only tell whether there was any confusion about what he had said.
Congress leaders are unhappy over one minister criticising the working of another UPA Ministry and that too in a foreign land. Party sources said this trend should not be encouraged.
Condemning Mr Ramesh's statement, the BJP demanded that the Prime Minister take immediate action against him.
Party Spokesperson Prakash Javadekar said it was shocking to find a Union Minister criticising the policies of his own country on a foreign soil.
The BJP Spokesperosn said that Mr Ramesh Ramesh was lobbying for Chinese companies instead of putting forth the views of Government of India. ''A Union minister criticising the government position on foreign land is not only rare but also untenable.''
Pointing out that lobbyists were influencing the government decisions and even portfolio allocation, as the recent startling revelations of officially taped conversation between a lobbyist and a minister confirmed, the BJP Spokesperson said the utterances of Mr Ramesh establish lobbyists also operate from within the government.
Mr Javadekar said Mr Ramesh should know that the Home Ministry and security agencies of the government had laid down certain security related guidelines, which are in national interest. ''Can a Union Minister rubbish these guidelines? Can he urge Government of India to trade with particular companies?''
The BJP Spokesperson dismissed as ''bizarre'' Mr Ramesh's logic that India would lose advantage and newfound love between the two countries in the post Copenhagen scenario. ''This is totally absurd,'' he said, adding that as a central minister he knows very well that there was no ban on Chinese equipment and more than 70 per cent of telecom equipment comes from China.
Mr Javadekar said the Environment Minister was aware of the fact that Chinese teams were continuously trying to hack the sensitive Defence data and are posing a security threat, and that was why India had adopted a procedure of security clearance before allowing Chinese imports.
It is not only India but also many other countries including USA which have adopted a policy of pre-security check for any Chinese equipment.
''Indian minister lobbying for Chinese companies notwithstanding the security threat to the country is unbecoming. He loses the moral authority to remain in the Union cabinet. The Prime Minister owes an explanation for the conduct of his cabinet colleague and continuing inter-ministerial squabbles,'' said Mr Javadekar.
The Communist Party of India (CPI) offered a word of caution to Mr Ramesh, saying he should have been more cautious and diplomatic while articulating his opinion on the need for Chinese investment in the country.
The party, however, did not demand the Minister's resignation.
CPI National Council Secretary Shameem Faizee said demanding the Minister's resignation on this issue would be an extreme step. ''We do not seek the Minister's resignation,'' he added.
