Modi Means Business

Modi Means Business

Narendra Modi's relationship with India's business leaders is one of the more intriguing aspects of the 2014 campaign. Although the Election Commission has very strict rules in most areas, when it comes to campaign finance it has failed to get its proposals for greater transparency accepted by either the BJP or Congress. We know some of the country's wealthiest industrialists supported Modi but we don't know how much they contributed to help finance his very ambitious and undoubtedly very expensive campaign. When I interviewed the Commission's highly respected former Chairman, S.Y. Quraishi, for The Modi Effect, he told me crony capitalism was a major concern. “There is no free lunch”, he told me. Corporate money in elections, he said, “has its dangerous implications.” So what were these business leaders expecting in return If they were hoping for special favours from the Prime Minister's Office or help with contracts, then they didn't know Mr Modi. He told me he had never helped out a financial backer in this way and never would. We can't know everything that goes on behind closed doors, but if Modi were ever caught breaking that pledge he would be finished. He made too much of being the anti-corruption candidate to survive a major scandal himself. What most of corporate India was looking for was actually a country that is open for business again, and an environment that makes it easier to do what they care about most invest, create jobs, and of course make a good profit. The BJP government has made some good progress on this, but there is still undoubtedly a long way to go. And while there is no explicit deal between Modi and the corporates, there is no mistaking what he wants from those who stand to do very well under his business friendly regime. When I worked for Tony Blair in Downing Street our mantra was 'economic efficiency and social justice'. I hope and believe that Narendra Modi wants the same for India. To put it crudely, he is saying to them, “I'll make it easier for you to expand your businesses and prosper, but in return I want you to make sure all of India benefits from your success.” That means putting toilets into schools, helping to clean up the country, and investing in major projects for the public good. Modi doesn't have the money in the public purse to deliver on all his ambitious promises and he needs the support of big business. I hope Modi won't make the same mistake as Blair and go too easy on the regulation of both financial and other markets. Fortunately, India has the chance to learn from what went wrong in the West and must try to avoid an unsustainable boom followed by a disastrous crash. Modi knows what it means to be poor. He wants the benefits of India's development to be felt by all and big business has a responsibility to help make sure it is. The above article was published in India Inc′s print edition of the India Investment Journal launched in April 2015 in conjunction with the Global Wealth Management Conclave 2015.

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