In an interview to CNBC-TV18's Shereen Bhan, Ravi Shankar Prasad, Minister, Law & IT spoke about the strength of Indian IT companies and a host of other issues.
Below is the verbatim transcript of the interview.
Q: We have got Prime Minister Modi meeting with President Trump on June 26. One of the issues I would imagine that will be taken up by India is the H-1B visa. While there has been no legislative change that the US has taken forward so far, it is only a proposed change, there are concerns on the Indian side. In fact almost every listed company has mentioned this as a risk factor in their filing to the US Securities and Exchange Commission. What will the Indian position be in conversations with the US administration on the H-1B issue?
A: I have spoken about it. My colleague, Nirmala Sitaraman has spoken about it. Arun Jaitley, even to England, he talked about it. Even Sushma Swaraj, the Foreign Minister has spoken. Our view is very clear and I want to reiterate it here. Indian IT company do not steal jobs. They create jobs, whether in India or abroad. I am very clear and very firm.
Today Indian IT companies are present in 200 cities of 80 countries. In America itself, they have created four lakh jobs in USA and they have given close to USD 20 billion tax revenue in the last five years. The IT sector by itself is reciprocal. Indian IT companies have helped nearly 500 fortune companies become more competitive and back home, in Bengaluru, Indian IT companies and Indian IT professionals are helping American companies create more and more new patents. This is how it works. But yes, I must note with satisfaction that the H-1B visa, number has not reduced, as far as Indians are concerned.
Q: As of now?
A: As of now. So we hope that the Prime Minister will go and surely convey his concerns at the highest level of meetings and I am very proud that my Prime Minister today, occupies a position of pre-eminence in the world as a true global leader and India is an emerging power house in the field of economy. So I am quite hopeful about it.
Q: Let me ask you about one of the things that you mentioned there. You talked about mobile phones and the make in India initiative, especially within the electronic segment, you gave the example of Samsung. If I may ask you about Apple. They just about started assembling in Bengaluru. They have started off with small dispatches, but for Apple to truly make in India, it is still pending clarity from the government by way of concessions that it can enjoy in the country. Has a decision now been taken by the government on whether you will provide any kind of waivers to Apple?
A: You are seeking headlines from me.
Q: That is my job as a journalist. You cannot fault me for that.
A: Which I do not wish to give you. Government and Apple are in conversation and the government will come with a structured response. I do not wish to say something when the whole dialogue is going on except to reiterate that India is a huge market in the field of electronics and also mobile. And Apple being a top company in the world must really explore Indian market in a positive way.
Q: So, forget about the waiver?
A: Did I say that?
Q: You are not saying that. Let me then talk to you about the Aadhaar because you mentioned the Aadhaar and how you believe this will ensure better governance and maximum results. There are different interpretations of the Supreme Court order. Does that partial stay bring in any kind of impediments at all as far as the government's plans for Aadhaar are concerned?
A: Not the least. First of all, the Supreme Court has upheld the constitutional validity added in Section 139. That is your pan card must be wedded to Aadhaar. And this is to ensure again, good governance so that people having pan card do not get involved in various kinds of activities which are not desirable. I do not want to say it here. We know what is happening.
Plus, in response to your query, Nitin Gadkari and we decided to merge driving licence with Aadhaar. Now drunken driver used to kill people, used to throw away their licence and used to have duplicate licences. If it is linked to Aadhaar, the moment you apply for a duplicate licence, the system will react, no you are having an Aadhaar and you get caught. Therefore, Aadhaar is creating also, a new benchmark of good governance.
They have also said that those who are not having it will not be given the punishment because the matter is pending before the constitutional bench. But they have upheld all our larger issue that you need to have your pan card wedded to Aadhaar.
Q: So what else can we expect in terms of linkage to Aadhaar? Direct benefit transfer (DBT) is already underway, the Civil Aviation Ministry is talking about linking Aadhaar now to boarding passes. Where else are we likely to see the Aadhaar linkage being taken forward?
A: A good product creates its own market. I always say that. If the product is good, people will come to accept it and today Aadhaar is safe, Aadhaar is secure and if Aadhaar, only in the case of Rs 2 lakh crore disbursal of subsidy can ensure saving of Rs 50,000 crore, it is speaking for itself. Ladies and gentlemen, do not forget, Rs 50,000 crore is our money, tax payers' money which was going into fictitious pockets. That is how I see it.
I am not going to insist upon it, but yes, Aadhaar being an important platform for delivery of services is entirely for the concerned ministry. Take the case of the sim card. How much of paper used to be wasted in the paperwork. Now Aadhaar, quick disbursal of sim, you save human resource time, you save paper, you save business time, you ensure profitability. This is how technology helps.
Q: Speaking of technology in governance, everyone is waiting for July 1 with the GST rollout on the anvil. I am sure you have been getting updates from the Goods and Services Tax Network (GSTN) as well. You have obviously been looking at the backend. There are concerns on the GSTN being able to cope with the kind of traffic that is expected on July 1. We have not really seen any full-scale trials. What is the latest update that you have been given from the GSTN?
A: If the Finance Minister is saying about it, if the Revenue Secretary is sanguine about it, why should we doubt about it? Let me tell you very frankly, we Indians must stop doubting our own abilities and stating here, I need to salute the Indian IT entrepreneurs that they keep the flag flying all over the world. Therefore, at least now, we must learn to trust our own potential, capabilities and ability.
Speaking politically, what is the biggest success of GST? In a country of so much of competing political interest, today from Mamta to Nitish Kumar to Lalu Prasad to Mulayam Singh Yadav to Akhilesh Yadav, all are on board on the need to have GST. That is how we undertook a dialogue. Therefore, if by political management we can manage the country politically, technological management will not be a problem.
Q: May I ask you a law question?
A: Okay, one question, go ahead.
Q: There is a Supreme Court judgement that was out a short while ago which says that the economic rationale must be considered that the court must, while observing and while pronouncing its judgement, think about job losses, the impact as far as the exchequer is concerned and so on and so forth. Does that give you comfort, does that give you confidence that perhaps things like we saw with this Supreme Court order banning liquor which has created all kinds of confusion, etc. this will perhaps clear the air at least on some of these issues?
A: I have not examined that judgement, therefore I cannot make any comment. But since you flagged that issue, there is not only one. With my legal experience, I can tell you, there are umpteen judgements of Supreme Court which says policy making must be left to those who are entrusted to make policies. Economic issues must be left to the judgement of those who manage the economic issues.
The reason is very simple. The courts are saying we are ill-equipped to handle these issues. Larger issue, I can only tell you this. Governance must be left in the realm of those elected to govern by the people of India and accountable to the people. That is what our constitutional scheme is. I salute the independence of our judiciary, they have done a great job in upholding the rule of law, giving access to justice to the people of India. But our founding fathers were very clear. Governance must be left to those elected to govern by the people of India.
Q: Two quick questions. One of course, is the RBI and what it said last night on the non-performing asset (NPA) issue. I am sure your ministry is also involved with the process.
A: This is the department of Mr Arun Jaitley. You should talk to him.
Q: The Law Ministry is also involved with Insolvency and Bankruptcy, so how confident do you feel that this process that has now been initiated will reach its conclusion?
A: I will respond to your query in a larger question of how government governs. We are coming with structural changes to address the concerns of NPA. RBI is important. The need for redressal of NPA problem is equally important. The firmness of the government is equally important. Therefore, by making the amendments in law, you remember that the whole Bankruptcy Code came about earlier, other laws were there. Now we are also coming with ordinance where RBI has also been empowered to initiate action, you know it very well.
It works like this. Narendra Modi government is a government which believes in institutional improvement and institutional correction and when the institutional improvement and institutional correction comes about where the rule of the game is applied without discrimination, then good governance follows the course.
Q: Again, I come back to a point that you talked about when you were speaking. You said that you feel the pain of the PSUs because of everything that they have to go through. Your government has now embarked on a strategic divestment programme. So far we have not seen a take-off yet, but maybe Air India could be the first that will proceed forward. I am sure that your ministry is being consulted on a lot of these issues related to strategic divestment. How confident do you feel that we are going to be able to get this off the ground soon?
A: Again this is a larger question. I mentioned why PSUs and government departments because of the constraints under which they work. There is attempt to completely belittle their contribution. In that context I said. But I never support NPAs even in PSU, we are very clear about it because ultimately, it is the public money which is involved there. If an entity is suffering a loss of Rs 40,000 crore or Rs 50,000 crore, the public money which is there, tax payers' money. I think leave it to the concerned department which are working.
Again, we believe in institutional correction in any field of governance and some of the observations which you have heard about is only in that regard. So please await for appropriate time for answer from the appropriate minster.
Q: New Attorney General?
A: I think digital future does not involve the appointment of new Attorney General.
Discover the latest Business News, Sensex, and Nifty updates. Obtain Personal Finance insights, tax queries, and expert opinions on Moneycontrol or download the Moneycontrol App to stay updated!
