In the preceding part [1], we explored how the origin and resurgence of Hindutva and its chief proponent Rastriya Swayam Sevak Sangh (RSS) happened first in the lap of British and then the US imperialism. It is seen that rather than protecting India’s interest as a Hindu “Nationalist”, RSS and Hindutva forces have always acted against it and have emerged as the most reactionary agent of imperialism. It was the first time during the era of Vajpayee that RSS got the share of power in the Indian state.
Vajpayee who had an image of being a “moderate”, “liberal” face of Hindutva, a “Nationalist”, and a “patriot” was made the prime minister first from 16th May, 1996 to 1st June, 1996 for 16 days and then from 19th March, 1998 to 22nd May, 2004 for more than 6 years. While Vajpayee’s “moderate” mask slips when we look at his stand on Gujarat riots in 2002 under his prime ministership and in other communal incidents like Babri Masjid demolition and Assam riots [2]. His hypocrisy of nationalism gets exposed by the fact that under the cacophony of jingoistic nationalism, keeping Kargil war, nuclear tests etc. as distractions, in the name of “India Shining” he passed series of orders and legislations leading to further subordination and all-out sale of our country to US imperialism and other foreign forces. We have seen in the previous part of the article that Vajpayee acted as an agent of imperialism giving confessions against freedom fighters during the Quit India movement. In this article we’ll see that this trend of his not only continued but grew in leaps and bounds while he was in power.
In the 16-day rule, the only decision that was taken was to commit to back the guarantees made (counter-guarantees) by the US based Enron power plant at Dhabol in Maharashtra which was vigorously being opposed by local peasants.
During his second term, while the country was celebrating Pokhran Nuclear tests (May 11th, 1998), the housing sector was opened to foreign investments. Three days later the mining licence for the US-based mining giant Phelps Dodge was approved for excavating copper and allied minerals in Bihar. With surprising speed on terms extremely favourable to the TNCs, counter-guarantees were granted for three fast-track power projects run by US and Japanese plants in India. Production-sharing contracts were signed in the oil sector for 18 exploration blocks, 11 of which were with foreign companies. The government also cleared as many as 34 proposals, 28 of them with TNCs, for prospecting and exploration of minerals, covering 49,000 sq kms in the mineral rich states of Bihar, Gujarat, Maharashtra, and Rajasthan.
Then, the Swadeshi BJP under the leadership of Vajpayee, passed a Videshi budget. It promised to double foreign investments, attract NRI investments, open the insurance sector to foreign investment, and allowed selling upto 76% shares of PSUs to private capital and TNCs. It reduced custom duty by Rs 1,500 crores per year, to the TNC oil companies. Capitulating to WTO’s pressure, it allowed imports for 340 restricted items. Finally, it gladly accepted all of Suzuki’s demands in the Maruti dispute. Amidst nuclear tests, the rupee devalued by 6%. Secret India-US government talks aka Jaswant Singh-Strobe Talbott talk led to further capitulation, evident not only in India’s readiness to accept Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) but also other economic surrenders to the US.
The next term of the BJP-led government from 1999 marked a quantum leap forward in the process of Liberalization, Privatization, and Globalization (LPG) in the name of “second generation reforms.” After taking office, in an urgency to conform to imperialist dictates, the Vajpayee government swiftly introduced 45 bills in the winter session, with eight directly aligned with WTO requirements. The government’s approach garnered praise from the international community. BJP’s servility to foreign interests reached such base levels that Yeshwant Sinha, while presenting the 1999 budget, said he was addressing an international audience.
The Vajpayee government’s revised EXIM (export-import) policy of 1997-2002 was the worst example of the extent to which they were prepared to stoop to sell our country’s interest. Going beyond the demands of the WTO, the policy offered excessive benefits to exporters, including tax exemptions and subsidies amounting to around Rs. 5,000 crores. This was when the government was desperately cutting food subsidies and social welfare schemes. Further, the new EXIM policy abolished Quantitative Restrictions (QRs) on 714 items much before the deadline set by WTO. This resulted in a flood of cheap imports impacting small-scale industries and agriculture. In addition, the government allowed import of second hand Capital Goods (means of production) freely without any licence and also reduced the import duty on them impacting the local capital goods industry heavily.
While the government spent crores each day, fighting over a barren patch of land on the Siachen Glacier, it handed over key industrial belts to the imperialists and their agents. Export Processing Zones (EPZs) were transformed into Free Trade Zones (FTZs), allowing tax-free imports and exempting labour laws. No duties, taxes, laws would apply to companies operating in these areas. Yet these companies could process goods within ‘Indian territory’ (outside the FTZs) without any regulations. This acted as de facto foreign territory, set up within India, to exploit our cheap labour and utilise the infrastructure set up at taxpayers’ expense.
FERA (Foreign Exchange Regulation Act) designed to regulate foreign investment was changed to FEMA (Foreign Exchange Management Act) designed to promote it. FERA helped the growth of local enterprises, particularly MSMEs, while FEMA sought to kill them. Legislations were passed to hand over the IT sector to the imperialists and e-commerce transactions were made tax-free. The concessions made in the new telecom policy gifted at least Rs 2,300 crores (in today’s terms Rs. 40,000 crores) to the TNC-collaborated telecom companies.
Subsequent budgets in 2001 and 2002 intensified these trends. They enabled full convertibility of NRI deposits, totalling around Rs 40,000 crores, making them external debt. NRIs gained repatriation rights for Indian earnings, enabling siphoning of wealth created in our country to abroad. FIIs were allowed to take over Indian private banks with up to 100% foreign equity, while Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A) regulations opened Indian industry to TNC takeovers.
The RSS-BJP government’s actions comprised a three-pronged assault on India’s interests. First, rushed legislations influenced by WTO, World Bank, and TNCs granted more power to foreign capital to dominate and loot our country. Second, Indian public assets like PSUs were sold off to TNCs and FIIs at throwaway prices, undoubtedly for high commissions. Third, encouragement of foreign capital inflow (through FDI, FIIs, GDRs) led to
unprecedented takeovers in industry, finance, and natural resources. In the name of anti-terrorism alliance, the US’s involvement expanded to security and intelligence activities to an extent of opening up an office of the FBI (an American Intelligence agency) in Delhi, compromising the sovereignty of our country. Simultaneously, the BJP-led government imposed harsh attacks on citizens, including raised fuel costs, retrenchments, subsidy cuts, reduced interest rates, rural neglect, and brutal attack on people’s struggles.
These developments under the RSS-BJP rule led by Vajpayee should be seen in context of LPG which is structurally transforming India’s economy and making it more dependent on US and other imperialist nations for capital, trade and technology. Its seed was sown in the late 1980s, full-fledged onslaught began after the Soviet Union’s collapse in ‘91, the Balance of Payments crisis in 1991-92 and the second IMF loan in the same year. Regardless of the ruling party, economic “reforms” were rushed, leading to total control of imperialist forces in our economy, politics and culture. Fake Swadeshi Vajpayee rode in this tide, distracting the people with communalism and jingoistic nationalism, increased this sell-out of our country multifolds in an attempt to cheer the imperialists and garner support of the foreign capital for Hindutva’s march to power in India.
References
[1] “Hypocrisy of Hindutva Part 1: Origin and Re-emergence”, Spark* Issue 5, May 2023
[2] https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/the-other-side-of-atal-bihari-vajpayee-3-instances-1322548-2018-08-24
