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Vajpayee seeks support for economic reforms

Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee urged rival politicians on Saturday not to hold India's decade-old economic reforms hostage to political bickering.

Vajpayee told a public meeting in West Bengal, which holds state elections next week, that reforms were badly needed, particularly in the state-controlled power sector.

"Party politics should not block economic reforms. Opposition for the sake of opposition won't take India forward," Vajpayee said in the remote village of Bulbulchandi.

West Bengal, where a communist government has been in power for 24 years, is among five states that go to the polls on May 10.

Vajpayee said the central government was keen to reform India's power sector, which is plagued by large-scale theft of electricity and a financial mess in state-run utilities.

"We need more electricity for agriculture and industry. We want to help the state governments but politics comes in the way," he said.

Power reforms launched in the early 1990s have achieved little, as state electricity boards are nearly bankrupt with estimated combined losses of around Rs 285 billion for the current year, due to the mismanagement and theft.

Most states are yet to usher in reforms through the privatisation of SEBs, which are the sole distributors of power.

Vajpayee also said his government would take a tough stand against corruption and malpractice in the stock markets.

"If the stock market works by a violation of rules, it will not be tolerated. We have not even spared senior officials," he said.

Indian stock markets crashed in March, days after a widely appreciated reforming Budget was presented to parliament.

An arms bribery scandal and charges of insider trading and market manipulation sent Indian shares tumbling. Strong opposition to privatisation of a profitable aluminium firm added to the central government's woes.

Vajpayee reiterated that his coalition government was stable, despite problems. "There is no cause for despair. There are difficulties, but we will solve them," he said.

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