New Delhi, Sep 15: Criticised for perceived policy paralysis, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Friday pushed the contentious decision to allow 51 percent FDI in multi-brand retail.
Informed sources said Manmohan Singh reportedly pushed for the decision at the meeting of the cabinet committee on economic affairs (CCEA), saying the United Progressive Alliance government needs to "bite the bullet" if it has to.
"We have to bite the bullet. If we have to go down, let us go down fighting," the prime minister was quoted by sources as having said at the meeting.
The strong position taken by Manmohan Singh is a repeat of 2008 when he staked the survival of the UPA-I government over the civil nuclear deal with the US.
That decision led the Left to withdraw support to the government, forcing a trust vote in the Lok Sabha which the government won.
In the case of the multi-brand retail FDI, the opposition to the decision primarily comes from the UPA ally Trinamool Congress.
The government had kept the decision, taken some time in November last year, in abeyance after Trinamool chief Mamata Banerjee's protest.
Soon after the CCEA decisions were made known, the prime minister appealed to the people to support the government's steps that were "taken in national interest".
"I urge all segments of public opinion to support the steps we have taken in national interest," the PMO's Twitter handle quoted him as saying.
"I believe that these steps will help strengthen our growth process and generate employment in these difficult times," he said.
"The cabinet has taken many decisions today to bolster economic growth and make India a more attractive destination for foreign investment," he added.
