On the Mumbai-Delhi disconnect
I think Mumbai has a special character. The word I would use is not 'disconnect,' but a 'separate identity.' Mumbai has a flavour which Delhi unfortunately doesn't, but Delhi is the seat of power. But increasingly, I think, the distance is getting less because India has changed as a country. Mumbai and other cities have played a phenomenal role. The mindsets have changed. Thirty years ago, profit was seen as evil...not something that was encouraged. Today, India has changed. We need to create wealth, we need to invest, we need to create job opportunities, we need to have the government and corporate sector help each other reach the ultimate goal ' which is to make our economy strong and our country a vibrant nation. It has to be a collaborative effort.
On the rough and tumble of elections
I've fought two elections. God has been kind because I've won those two. Fighting elections and winning them is a whole different strategy and a whole different world; because sometimes it is not logical. There are other external circumstances that overtake what you think should be the logical response of people. I happen to represent Ajmer which is, for me, a very new constituency. I went to fight elections in 2009, and in that particular constituency, the BJP won seven times in a row. I don't know what inspired me to do it, but I went there and I asked my party to contest that election. Fighting election on party symbols, convincing voters to vote for you, it's not what it seems. People think politicians land in helicopters, wave their hands, give a 10-minute speech and go away. It doesn't work like that. You have to be involved in the lives of people.
On the need for change
In India, we have different yardsticks for politicians and different ones for other professions. Whether it's Bollywood, cricket, journalism or business, what happens there is half-a-bit controversy and it's over. But for politicians, it becomes a debating point for weeks. They are under more scrutiny because they must lead by example. They take an oath under the Constitution, they are more liable to discharge their duties than anyone else. Politics in India has always been a messy affair but there are people in politics who are good. I'm not saying that they are 100 per cent saints; everybody does what they have to and say and do things to get elected. But overall this churning process started in the last few years and I am hopeful that in five or 10 years, something good will come out of this.
2 pc on CSR is the best investment a company can make: Sachin Pilot
On drafting the new Companies Act
The Bill has got 470 sections, 1,500 clauses, but the Bill, I must tell you, is a very exhaustive one, which has taken 10 years. We looked at laws in Europe, Australia, America and Britain, and tried to imbibe the best they had to offer, keeping in mind India's unique landscape in terms of what our companies are made of. Two-third of all our companies are family-owned.
In December 2012, the Lower House approved the Bill. It got consensus from all, including the Communist Party of India. All the naysayers said to me that the Bill would not go through Rajya Sabha and they were right, with all the disruptions and so on. The monsoon session came, and they said it's the second last session and it would not get passed. I personally made an effort to reach out to the principal Opposition party. I spoke to all BSP, SP, JD(U) and TMC because all of them have to be on board for us to pass this Bill.
On CSR under the new Act
What is CSR? We are still to decide on the rules, but I'm taking the liberty of sharing this with you. Anything that your board feels is beneficial to society can be made a part of CSR. All I'm saying is please disclose it on your website. Let the board approve it. It is not up to me to decide what is CSR or not. There are a hundred thousand things people want us to do ' from saving animals to environment, to cleanliness to ending poverty. If the board of a company thinks that a project is a social investment, let them approve it. There is no 'Inspector Raj', there is no certificate required from the Government of India. My ministry and officers can't tell you what to do. It is your company's hard-earned money. Please use it with any trust or foundation you want to. If you are not able to spend the money in a particular year, just explain why you couldn't. I'm trying to keep the government intervention to the barest minimum possible. It is the best investment you can make.
On Modi
Modi fought a tough battle to be called the PM candidate for the BJP. Now look at the timeline. Congress's tally was 156 in 2004. In 2009, LK Advani was projected as the prime ministerial candidate from the BJP and NDA. When Advani became PM candidate, our tally became 206. Mr Modi is now the BJP's official PM candidate. When Vajpayee was heading the NDA, there were 22 parties in the alliance. Today there are two ' Shiv Sena and Badal's party. The number of people who are PM aspirants is about 11 in the BJP in the last count. We all know the top leadership of BJP was almost at breaking point because of his (Modi's) nomination. He is just a nominee and not the PM by the way. A person who is causing strong likes and dislikes in his party, who is unable to keep his coalition together, someone who many countries in the world will not give a visa to come and visit them. But a person who is so divisive...I think he is very choreographed and his managers do a very good job in putting his face out and marketing it. He certainly gets people to come and listen to him, but will he be able to carry this nation together? Will his leadership not be something that will ultimately prove to be brittle?
On fighting the BJP
The BJP as a political party does not exist in Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, in the Northeast, Kashmir and in many parts of the country. It's the main opposition party but it does not have a presence in 10 or 11 states. Can Modi deliver MPs for Tripura, Nagaland and other parts where the party does not exist? Even people who are sympathisers of BJP say that Vajpayee had a certain charisma, he would take people along, and yet at its peak, the BJP did not cross 170 or whatever the number was. Politics is about numbers; whoever will get the majority will form the government. I am confident, with whatever we have done, we will go ahead with our heads held high, with the policies we have made, the laws we have passed, I have faith in our democracy and I am sure UPA-III is a reality.
On the climate of despair
The last one-and-a half year has been bad for various reasons. I think things could be better, we need to do more. The economy has certainly slipped. I am the last one to say that we are doing wonderful things with our economy. But there are many circumstances that are beyond the government's control, and it has affected us negatively but should we then sit back and close our shop and say this is all over? I'm not one of those people. I take full responsibility for all the bad things which you think have happened, but I also want you to credit us with the good things that have happened in the last 10 years. People have got more money in their pockets. There have been more social investments than ever before. There have been more schemes and programmes, budgets and policies made that one would not have thought 10 years ago.
On reforms
Well, the truth is that in the last year or so a lot of political capital has been spent on things other than the positive reform agenda. Every government has to do fire fighting. I think the government's intent and idea is to keep following the idea of reforms, to open up more, to have more investments, to make things less cumbersome. Have we been fully successful? I don't think so. Can we do more? Certainly. This is a challenging time. We are cutting back on our expenses, we need to get more investments in, we have to change the policies. We have done a few things ' the Pension, the FDI, the Companies Bill. They have all been well received by the economy. I think it has given some confidence to the investors, both domestic and foreign.
' Transcribed by Priyal Dave, Kevin Lobo, Meenakshi Iyer, Shahid Judge and Tabassum Barnagarwala