Stalinists and Maoists Join the Chorus with National Bourgeoisie on FDI in Retail

-Rajesh Tyagi/ 29.11.2011

The cabinet decision approving 100 percent Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in single brand retailing and 51 percent in multi brand, has met with obvious resistance from sections of national and petty bourgeoisie, their leaders and parties.

In India, 100 percent FDI is already permitted in many sectors through automatic route and in some sectors through government route. Retail trading was a sector among few others, where FDI was altogether banned until the recent decision of the cabinet.

The new policy approved by the cabinet decision, mandates a minimum investment of $100 million with at least half the amount to be invested in back-end infrastructure, including cold chains, refrigeration, transportation, packing, sorting and processing . Sourcing of a minimum of 30% from Indian micro and small industry is also made mandatory. Foreign equity is however permitted only in mega cities with at least one million population. State governments would be free to adopt or refuse the new policy.

The decision was facilitated by immense growth in retail and wholesale trade of China after it approved 100% FDI in retail. Thailand has experienced similar growth in the agro-processing industry.

Cabinet decision, a decree of global capital, has smashed through the protective national barriers in India. At a time when advanced countries are reeling under yet another financial crisis in the settings of a general downturn of world economy, the global capital finds an escape route to survival in migration to comparatively virgin market territories of the world, like India. Productive forces, bereft of the space to expand further inside the borders of advanced countries of the West and above all US, seek a vent in export of capital in enlarged investments in the developing markets like India.    

However, even before FDI in retail is allowed in India, local corporates like Reliance have already occupied the centre stage, pushing the small enterprises in retail to the margins. These local corporates now fear the axe of huge investments under FDI, threatening to wipe them out from the centre stage. So far as small retailers are concerned, they are already pushed to the wall and are destined to find their place either on the margins of the market or in the ranks of the proletariat. It hardly matters for them whether the centre stage in market is occupied by local or global corporates.

During next three years period, huge investments in FDI in the retail sector in India are expected to add around 10 million work force in agro-processing, sorting, marketing, logistics management and front-end retail. FDI is thus to result in further acceleration of the process of proletarianisation of population, gradually wiping out the big and small enterprises.

Expected huge inflow of investments in FDI, is being looked at no less than a noose around the neck of national big and small enterprises, as FDI can make headway only through destruction of local players. Finding them unable to cope in this race with global players like Wallmart, sections of local bourgeoisie have erupted in protest against the policy decision of the government. National groups of these capitalists, facing the danger of extinction and marginalisation in face of huge investment of global capital, have set up themselves against the cabinet decision.

Joint opposition of the political parties and their leaders of varied hues, to the FDI in retail, a position shared in common from BJP on the far right to Stalinists and Maoists on the left, is reflective of the common position of the sections of local capitalists in defence of their class interest.

In opposing the global investments, both Stalinists and Maoists share these nationalist positions with right wing nationalist BJP and other petty bourgeois parties. Leaders of the Stalinist CPI, Gurudas Das Gupta and Atul Anjan, addressing the media separately on November 28, have expressed concerns against the FDI, opposing it on the ground that it would hit hard the small enterprise. Their defence of small enterprise exposes their petty bourgeois political character, and shows in whose interests they speak.

Capital is one of the chief productive forces in our times. Its expansion over the globe corresponds to global integration of economic forces, production and trade. This integration is everywhere resisted by the barriers erected by the national states, their laws and parties, representing the interests of their own capitalists. This contradiction between the globally integrating economic forces on one hand and the reactionary capitalist national states on the other, is the chief source of all wars and conflicts resulting in all round curbing and destruction of productive forces, worldwide.

As the integration of economic life takes place under conditions of monopoly capitalism, i.e. under domination of monopolies and imperialist countries, it meets resistance everywhere. Masses fight for survival against its intrusion to peripheries as it threatens them to pauperise and proletarianise. In this sense globalisation has played an immense revolutionary role through mobilisation of productive forces on a global scale.    

Indian working class, as section of the International working class, cannot imagine opposing the global movement and expansion of capital in any form, including FDI. It does not oppose imperialism from the standpoint of national capitalism, out of which imperialist monopolies have grown long back in time. Working class opposition to imperialism comes only from the standpoint of socialism. Working class is interested in transcending Imperialism and not in defending the national capitalism against it. Working class does not pull back capitalism, rather strives to push it forward to its grave.

Not the defence of capitalist nation, big or small, but socialist revolution of the working class wiping out capitalism from the face of the earth.       

From the standpoint of the working class, we thus oppose all attempts of the capitalist nation states at erecting barriers against free movement of the productive forces across the globe. We are for elimination of national borders and integrating the globe into a socialist union. We cannot support the national capitalists and the national states under them in their defence against the global march of productive forces, whatever the pretext may be.