[She said the previous government had not moved for four years on the Peace Clause in the WTO agreement and "left it hanging". That's something patently absurd! The WTO Bali Declaration, which enunciated the subject "agreement"including the above-referred "peace clause", was adopted only on December 7 2013 (see: <http://wto.org/english/thewto_e/minist_e/mc9_e/balipackage_e.htm>). And it's not four years, in about four months, on April 9 2014, the polling for the sixteenth Lok Sabha commenced.]
I/III. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/modi-nirmala-on-different-pages-pm-must-clarify-on-wto-congress/articleshow/40080263.cms Modi, Nirmala on different pages, PM must clarify on WTO: CongressTNN | Aug 12, 2014, 04.06 AM IST NEW DELHI: The government on Monday said the WTO deal reached in Bali was not in the interests of the country even as the Congress sought to put pressure over Prime Minister Narendra Modi's statement over the weekend. Congress on Monday forced Rajya Sabha to adjourn twice over World Trade Organization (WTO) issues, claiming that Modi's statement during a BJP function was contrary to what commerce minister Nirmala Sitharaman had told both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. Congress members led by former commerce minister Anand Sharma raised the issue and demanded a clarification from the prime minister. Though leader of the House and finance minister Arun Jaitley said that there was no contradiction at all in what the PM and the commerce minister had said, the opposition created an uproar, insisting on a clarification from Modi and forcing the House to adjourn first for 10 minutes and later till noon. As Congress members repeatedly talked about contradiction, Sitharaman said, "Let us not give room for any kind of distortion ... PM's comments are very much in the background we have discussed." She said the previous government had not moved for four years on the Peace Clause in the WTO agreement and "left it hanging", adding, "It is important to read the Prime Minister's statement in that context." Last month, WTO members failed to clear an agreement that will pave the way for easier customs rules as India insisted that the 160 countries should also address concerns related to food subsidy paid to farmers under the procurement programme. While the UPA government had agreed to the plan, a change of guard at the Centre has resulted in India blocking a deal saying it will not agree on trade facilitation agreement until a permanent solution on food security is found. Some Congress leaders such as former commerce minister Anand Sharma have criticized the BJP government's stand. On Monday Congress members objected to Modi's remark that the previous UPA government had "sacrificed the interest of the common people" by signing the Bali agreement. Insisting that the UPA had clinched the best possible deal for India at the Bali summit, Congress members also charged the PM with "deliberate misinterpretation of facts" and alleged that his statement about NDA regime's success at WTO was an orchestrated propaganda based on inaccuracies. II/III. http://indianexpress.com/article/india/politics/modis-remark-on-wto-factually-incorrect-and-false-alleges-congress/ Modi's remark on WTO 'factually incorrect and false', alleges Congress Press Trust of India <http://indianexpress.com/agency/press-trust-of-india/> | New Delhi | August 10, 2014 7:34 pm Congress on Sunday termed as "astonishing and misleading" Prime Minister Narendra Modi's remark suggesting that the UPA government compromised on the issue of food security at WTO and said it would raise the matter in Parliament on Monday. "The statement of Modi, his claim of standing up for food security in the interest of farmers by taking up a stand in opposition to the one taken by the UPA government is misleading and given with the objective to confuse the people," Congress leader and former Commerce Minister Anand Sharma said. Noting that Modi's remark that India had disregarded the interest of farmers and the right to food security at Bali was "astonishing, factually incorrect and false", he said it contradicted the statement made by the Minister of State for Commerce and Industry on August 5 and 6 in Parliament. Sharma, who is the Deputy Leader of Congress in Rajya Sabha, said in a statement that when both the Houses are in session, it becomes a question of privilege of the members to know what is the truth. "Which of the two is true?" Sharma asked, adding, "Whether what Modi is saying correct or the MoS is saying is correct. Congress will raise the issue on Monday." The former Union Minister was reacting to the remarks of Modi made at the BJP national council meeting yesterday that "those who sought votes in the name of food security, signed the agreement (sacrificing the interest of poor people)". Modi had also said that the government "chose" to take a tough stand in the recent WTO talks as it has to protect the interest of the poor people of the country rather than to look for good publicity in the international media. Sharma had signed the accord at Bali last year which, among other things, had agreed for signing the TFA by July 31, 2014. He further said, "It is embarrassing that the Prime Minister is confusing the right of public stock holding issue with sovereign right of food security. Food security is a sovereign right and a sovereign space and has never been a part of WTO agenda." "The Prime Minister of India is expected to be well informed and literate about the position taken by India in multilateral forums and the WTO. The Prime Minister has either been misinformed or has chosen to deliberately make a statement, which is incorrect and false," he added. "Prime Minister needs to be reminded that it was India's strong and uncompromising stance that forced the issue of procurement of foodgrains for public stock holding and livelihood countries on the Bali WTO agenda despite stiff opposition from the US, European Union and other developed countries." III. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Congress-dares-govt-to-reject-WTO-Bali-pact/articleshow/40080587.cmsCongress dares govt to reject WTO Bali pactTNN | Aug 12, 2014, 04.13 AM IST NEW DELHI: Congress leader Anand Sharma challenged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to reject the Bali agreement if he was confident of his statement that UPA had compromised national interest at the WTO ministerial summit. Sharma said Modi was hiding behind his ministers and did not come to Rajya Sabha on Monday to back his remark that UPA had risked food security by signing the Bali pact and that his government took a tough stand last month to undo the damage. "If the PM is so knowledgeable, he should speak. Why use ministers as shield," Sharma said. The former commerce minister said UPA had forced the issue of food subsidies back on the WTO agenda and secured a permanent solution that will not be available in future because of the NDA government's stand. He said Modi was trying to confuse people by talking of food security, saying the latter was not part of WTO discussions and India had full freedom in providing foodgrain to its people. With India refusing assent to the trade facilitation agreement by raising the issue of food subsidies, Sharma said, "Let the PM say we reject the TFA." The deputy leader of opposition in Rajya Sabha said India has a stake in facilitating trade through the agreement. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Green Youth Movement" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. 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