Get out of Gujarat CM mode: The Economist's scathing review of PM Modi's first year in office

Even as criticism of the government is mounting, The Economist, which once termed Modi a ‘divisive man’, has come out with an article that is likely to hit the prime minister where it hurts most.

According to the article the two major issues with Modi are that he thinks 1) “time is on his side”; 2) he can bring about the change all alone.

True. Time is on Modi’s side. Look at inflation. It has fallen and is now in a comfortable range, though the government’s contribution in achieving this has been minor, given what has worked in Modi’s favour is low crude oil prices. His party has an majority in the Lok Sabha and the opposition is feeble. But that’s not the case with the Rajya Sabha, where the BJP is in a minority. This is where complacency has set in.

The Prime Minister thinks that he can wait until his party gets a majority in Rajya Sabha to take unpopular decisions, says The Economist.

“That rests on a delusion among Indian leaders that they must consolidate power first and reform later,” says the report.

The second issue is more grave. That Modi is a ‘one-man band’ is now part of political legend. Despite many experts and observers warning against his style of functioning, Modi has largely not been seen as compromising his authoritarian attitude.

Even the finance minister Arun Jaitley, who seems to be facing the most flak for the functioning of the Modi government hasn’t been spared in the article. As Firstpost has noted earlier , Jaitley’s reluctance to recapitalise banks and increase public spending is holding up the revival.The investment community has been up in arms against the slow pace of reforms and FIIs have been at the forefront of the angry voices from the investment community against Modi.

“So far, the new government has done nothing but talk, and it is a shame because Modi had experience; he said he knew what needs to be done,” investing guru Jim Rogers said in a recent interview to Livemint .

What has particularly irked the FIIs is the double talk of the government on Tax issues. Though the BJP has been critical of the UPA’s ’tax terrorism’, tax department has sent demand notices worth Rs 602 crore to these investors. This pertains to the income they earned in the earlier years - effectively a retrospective tax.

In order to revive its mojo, Modi will have to relaunch the government and for this, he has to bring in talent from the private sector like the UPA had done, says the report. This is important because it says the BJP is “short of capable leaders” to strengthen ministries like finance and corporate affairs, it says. The two ministries have been drawing a lot of criticism for not living up to the expectations, while the power ministry is seen as the best performing.

The prime minister will also have to set aside his uncompromising attitude and make adjustments in Parliament, where the NDA has been facing protests from the Congress. In short, the article notes : Modi needs to understand that he is not the chief minister of Gujarat any more but leads the nation.

Read the entire article here .