BJP asks government to rethink Eurozone pact
New Delhi, Feb 6 (IANS) The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Monday urged the government not to go ahead with the proposed Bilateral Trade and Investment Agreement (BTIA) with the European Union (EU) and demanded an all-party meeting on the issue.
In a statement issued here, party spokesperson Prakash Javadekar said the agreement should not be signed in “undue haste and without political consensus”.
“Given the Eurozone crisis and the expansive nature of the agreement, India should not bind itself to unnecessary commitments without being assured of significant gains,” Javadekar said.
“The BJP calls upon the government to act with due caution during the EU-India Summit that is to be held in New Delhi from Feb 10,” he added.
India and the EU have been negotiating the BTIA for around five years. The EU is India’s largest trading partner, with bilateral trade estimated to be over $75 billion.
The EU has lobbied hard for steep reduction in tariffs for export of its automobiles, wines and spirits to India.
The EU has also been pushing India to open up the banking and insurance, postal, legal, accounting, maritime, security and retail sectors, among others.
