The harsh truth is that Delhi has emerged as a lobby capital. Under the much maligned 'licence-permit-quota raj', they descended from Bombay to chase files and please a vulnerable politician or two. Now nothing moves here without the high-tech lobby push. For bigger deals, it is the multi-faceted, multi-million operation. The scenario looks strikingly similar to what economist Raghuram Rajan describes in his recent book 'Faultlines.' It is increasingly becoming the play of 'profusion of well-connected billionnires.' The murky world of high-profile lobbyists - what Rajan calls 'secrets of connectivity' - facilitates grabbing of 'natural resources, land, government contracts or licences' and trade opening and tariff concessions. Honest competition and efficiency are the biggest casualties of the Delhi's lobby culture.

In US lobbying is legal but not in India. They have hundreds of registered lobby firms. From mid-2008s, lobbying by interest groups to twist government policies and wreck natural competition has become so brazen. Now we have a new trend. The ugly lobby wars by rival business groups with the government reversing decisions as per the pressure. If in doubt, consider the following cases happened in less than a year. 'PMO bats for European tele venders,' said a headline in Delhi's most circulated English daily. This highlights how the government reversed its policy with regard to the purchase of IT equipment for India's service providers again and again as the lobby push worked.

First the government had banned the import of Chinese equipment on security ground. Then private giants like Tata Tele and Reliance Com began putting pressure on the government to permit the use of the cheaper and better Chinese equipment. The government first resisted and then yielded on the condition that all foreign suppliers should reveal the secret encryption to India's security agencies. The Chinese agreed but the European suppliers like Ericsson, Nokia and Siemens lobbied hard to get the encryption condition scrapped. And the PMO yielded.

A similar thing happened in the case of power equipment from China. First the domestic manufacturers lobbied to prevent the cheaper Chinese equipment but the power firms got it reversed. Then the government was pressurized to impose a customs duty on import for power projects under a 'mega power policy'. Now the government finds itself in a bind when leading power producers like Tata Power, Reliance Power, Essar, Adani, Jindal, GMR, GVK, and Lanco came together as a more powerful lobby to get the earlier decision reversed.

Perhaps the worst story of the lobby raj pertains to the PMO batting for the powerful foreign drug giants. Fifty NGOs have in a letter alleged that heads of five drug MNCs had met PMO officials who agreed to help change Indian patent law to ban production of cheap generic drugs by domestic firms. Accordingly, PMO had in July last sent the 'data' submitted later by the association of the MNC drug firms (OPPI) to the health and industries ministries. Present Indian law permits the third party manufacture of generic drugs. By getting the Indian rules scrapped, the MNCs could prevent the domestic firms from making the cheap drugs. The NGOs call this the worst kind of 'non-transparent lobbying' and the PMO's ready consent much against domestic interests.
Behind the conflict between the steel and commerce ministries over the export of iron ore to China, is a fierce lobby war. Last month, the commerce ministry publicly defended the exports. Mining is an area where even MNCs are in forefront. This is an issue for talks during Obama's November visit. Some time back one lobby persuaded the government on comprehensive bill which will provide 26 per cent stake for the displaced tribals. But last month, CII and FICCI have firmly rejected the idea. Now GoM under Pranab Mukherjee is in a fix as to how to proceed.

Despite an FTA with ASEAN, outside lobbies had managed exclusion of Indian engineering and construction firms from bidding in their area. Indian firms like L & T are now lobbying for retaliation. Frustrated at the foreign lobby power, L & T chairman this month met the commerce minister to protest. Another FTA, now being negotiated with European Union, has also caught in an intense lobby war. Last week, prominent NGOs in both countries released how the lobbies are trying to compromise the aam aadmi's interests through 'opaque deals.'

The sugar lobby, it now looks, is about to strike it rich with the PM last month deciding to set up a panel to suggest decontrol, a demand they have been pushing for the past four decades. Claiming access to both Sharad Pawar and PMO, they boast of having convinced them that once the levy sugar system goes, the whole sugar problem will be resolved for ever. Here, again, the only hurdle is the Sonia establishment. Indian sugar economy is notoriously tricky and the politically influential farmers and consumers are its stake holders.

Under our system, lobby power is an unequal war where the dumb millions have little wherewithal to argue their case. This is especially so when the policy makers are solely preoccupied with raising production and investment for which business interests, both foreign and domestic will have overriding priority. Everything can be justified for this. Apart from hindering competition and efficiency, it protects the crook and cultivates corruption, bribery and money power. Such official patronage simply tends to sidetrack the country's democratic institutions and political system.

The new law just passed by the US Congress should be an eye-opener for the present lobby-driven system under the UPA. The new US law makes it obligatory to record and make public all meetings of senior officers and politicos with lobbyists, bankers, executives and former regulars themselves. Other regulatory agencies like Federal Communications Commission have already making such meetings transparent.

In India, where the rulers take biz lobbying as part of growth strategy, resistance to the distortions by the 'well-connected', come from the NGOs. More than the organized Left, evasive main opposition and disinterested regional parties, it is the Sonia establishment that promises to curb the trend. Recently, one of them close to the establishment quipped to the friendly media persons: there is a lobby behind every decision of this government. (IPA Service)