NEW DELHI: The Indian government is unlikely to call a snap election despite its biggest ally abruptly quitting the ruling coalition, as it needs time to implement flagship welfare schemes and hopes the economy will improve, government sources said yesterday.
The withdrawal of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) has rattled markets, which are worried that it has left Prime Minister Manmohan Singh unable to pass reforms needed to turn around the worst economic slowdown in a decade. That, in turn, has fired speculation that the government, which is in a minority in parliament and relies on the support of powerful but unpredictable regional parties to stay in power, could call a quick election before its term officially runs out next year.
However, leaders in the ruling Congress party told Reuters the government will wait in order to pass legislation aimed at shoring up its popularity, which has been punctured by corruption scandals and anger over high prices.
“We have been given a mandate for five years and we intend to ensure that it is not aborted,” Jairam Ramesh, rural development minister, told Reuters.
But big-ticket economic reforms such as opening the pensions and insurance sectors to foreign investors are likely to face stiff opposition in parliament, analysts said. A major regional party that often votes with the government said on Tuesday it would oppose the measures.
In particular, the government wants to pass a bill ramping up food subsidies for hundreds of millions of poor who form its core vote base and helped it win back-to-back general elections. It also wants to widen a system — currently being rolled out in different parts of the country — of handing out money to poor families to pay for essentials such as cooking gas.
“We are not looking to hold early elections. We want to do the full term not just to pursue our welfare programmes but also to allow the economy to revive,” said a senior Congress party official.
REUTERS
