Economics meets politics: Top business leaders weigh in on India's polls

[caption id=“attachment_81643” align=“alignnone” width=“860”] Like everyone else in the country, India Inc has had an opinion on the ongoing elections as well. Here’s what some of the country’s corporate leaders had to say about the 2014 Lok Sabha polls.
NRN Murthy, founder and executive chairman of board, Infosys - “I can’t support any political party, only wish the best for Nilekani, Balakrishnan,” Murthy told Business Standard. Image: Reuters[/caption]

[caption id=“attachment_81646” align=“alignnone” width=“860”] Adi Godrej, chairman, Godrej Consumer Products - “If we have an NDA government they will be very growth oriented. They will remove the negatives…. I fell it will be very good for the economy if they can form the government without too many hitches from people who may not support their agenda. I expect they will take steps to moderate tax rates to grow economy again. They will take steps to ensure that the negative perception created by retrospective amendments are corrected. They will take steps to see that projects go forth,” he said to CNBC-TV18. Image: Reuters[/caption]

[caption id=“attachment_81647” align=“alignnone” width=“860”] Deepak Parekh, chairman, HDFC - “We need better education, we need better governance and we need better growth and I remain confident that we will get better on all these three parameters and the faster we get, better it is for us…If one looks at the current scenario and the growth trajectory, I personally feel that the worst is behind us.” Image: Reuters[/caption]

[caption id=“attachment_81648” align=“alignnone” width=“860”] Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CMD, Biocon - “#BJPManifesto’s commitment to food, water, health & job security, education & skill development are more thoughtful than UPA’s dole approach… #BJPManifesto’s commitment to legal, judicial, adm & police reforms will deliver quick results.Will boost investor & citizens’ confidence” - Taken from Twitter. Image: Reuters[/caption]

[caption id=“attachment_81649” align=“alignnone” width=“860”] Mohandas Pai, former CFO, Infosys - “Nandan (Nilekani) is a social liberal and so he will go to the Congress. Many in the Congress follow politics of doles. They haven’t given good governance and think they can buy votes by doles. Hopefully Nandan will change that,” he told CNN-IBN. Image: Reuters[/caption]

[caption id=“attachment_81650” align=“alignnone” width=“860”] Naina Lal Kidwai, country head, HSBC India - “The economic policies of AAP I am not familiar with. I only know of the couple of steps that had been taken recently and I hear that they are putting together something…The comfort which we draw at least from BJP and Congress, is that they both tend to certainly acknowledge that growth is important for India and for that we need industrial and manufacture and financial growth. As Chidambaram said in his budget speech last March and we know that Modi embraces this as well. So that was the comfort,” she said to NDTV. Image: Reuters[/caption]

[caption id=“attachment_81651” align=“alignnone” width=“860”] Rajiv Bajaj, chairman, Bajaj Auto - “To me the Congress is a bit like the Chetak. It had its days, and right now doesn’t seem very relevant, or it has not kept itself very relevant…Like the Splendor, the BJP is a little better, but frankly it’s the same animal. The BJP is not very different from the Congress in terms of governance… To me the AAP is a bit like the Pulsar. It is clearly different; it creates a space of its own. You may like it, you may hate it, but you cannot ignore it,” he said to NDTV Profit. Image: Reuters[/caption]

[caption id=“attachment_81665” align=“alignnone” width=“860”] Mukund Rajan, executive council member, Tata Sons Group - “The question is being raised about new political parties. Clearly, they have no representation in the outgoing Parliament but they may have a representation in the incoming Parliament. If they do well in their representation, they will automatically receive funds,” he told agencies about the Aam Aadmi Party. Image: Reuters[/caption]

[caption id=“attachment_81652” align=“alignnone” width=“860”] Anand Mahindra, chairman, Mahindra & Mahindra - “Like everybody else, I am in a twilight zone, am in a state of limbo…am just waiting for the new government to come,” on the government’s foot-dragging with regard to electric vehicles. Image: Reuters[/caption]

[caption id=“attachment_81660” align=“alignnone” width=“860”] Gurcharan Das, former head, India P&G - “It is possible that we might get a strong leader if (Narendra) Modi wins. He will get things going and restore high growth and he will reduce corruption, but he will not do the governance reforms needed to make India a strong liberal state,” he said in an interview with the Asia Society. Image: Amit Verma/Forbes India[/caption]