The CPI (M) on Tuesday urged the Union Government to place before Parliament the policy on Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in multi-brand retail sector and obtain approval.
Talking to reporters here, CPI (M) Polit Bureau member Sitaram Yechury said that an executive order on the issue would not suffice.
His party would raise in Parliament a host of issues, including foreign investment in pension funds and foreign players in the insurance sector.
Mr. Yechury, who was here to deliver the 25th V.P. Chintan memorial lecture on ‘12 Five Year Plan and the Common Man’, said four crore people were directly employed in the retail sector and if their families were included, the number would be 20 crore.
“They account for one fifth of the population and allowing FDI in retail trade will deprive them of their livelihood.”
He said though 12 Five Year Plan had been approved by the Union Cabinet, it was yet to be placed and discussed in the National Development Council (NDC), which was the authority to finalise the adoption of the plan.
Mr. Yechury contended that the planning process in the country had deviated from its original fundamental principles of promoting the welfare of people and, instead, had been refashioned to maximise the profit of the private sector.
