Jammu, Dec 3 (IANS) The main opposition Peoples Democratic Party in Jammu and Kashmir Saturday came out against foreign direct investment (FDI) in retail and asked the central government to consult all, including the opposition parties, on the issue.
The PDP declared its opposition to FDI in retail, an issue that has triggered a national debate, at a meeting of its leaders here Saturday.
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and his father and union Minister of New and Renewable Energy Farooq Abdullah are staunch supporters of FDI in retail.
Patron of PDP and former chief minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed cautioned the central government against taking any decision in haste and stressed that there was a need to protect the interests of all sections of society.
He told party leaders that ‘before taking any decision on allowing FDI in the retail sector, interests of a vast majority of the people of the country should be kept in mind’.
‘Instead of making it a prestige issue, the government should rather try to evolve consensus by involving all political parties on this important matter,’ he said.
He advised the government to look into all the pros and cons before taking any decision on FDI in retail.
‘India must develop like Europe and America but we need to pay attention to the ground realities. Poor people, who are dependent on daily wages, shouldn’t lose their means of livelihood by this decision. We need to pay attention to that also,’ he said.
