Against the backdrop of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's visit to Germany, BJP today objected to India entering the final phase of signing a Free Trade Agreement with the European Union without discussing it in Parliament despite being aware of the opposition to it.
Senior BJP leader and Public Accounts Committee Chairperson Murli Manohar Joshi cautioned that signing an FTA with the EU will lead to the latter flooding the Indian market with dairy, poultry, sugar, wheat, confectionary, oilseeds, plantation products and fisheries.
"This will directly compromise India's agricultural sovereignty and its food security," Joshi said, adding there is no provision for discussing subsidies and other incentives given by the EU to its farmers which put them in an advantageous position vis-a-vis India.
BJP sought to know why the government is set to move ahead on this when the matter is with Parliament's Standing Committee on Commerce where apprehensions of signing an FTA with the EU have been voiced strongly.
"Irrespective of ideological considerations, the conditions which, according to reports, the UPA government is willing to concede to EU will seriously jeopardise the interests of the Indian people with no obvious gains in trade or economic expansion," Joshi said.
Gains will only be made by India through such an agreement in the field of textiles, garments and leather but EU's gain in industry and manufactures alone is almost double of this, he added.
BJP demanded a comprehensive debate be held in Parliament on all FTAs, especially the ones with the EU, and negotiating text and impact assessment studies of these be released immediately.
The party will raise this issue in Parliament when it meets after the recess ends on April 22.
