Rahul Gandhi thanks Centre for taking note of his warning, amending FDI norms

New Delhi: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday thanked the Centre for amending the FDI norms to make government approval mandatory in some specific cases such as relating to an entity of a country which shares a land border with India.

“I thank the Govt. for taking note of my warning and amending the FDI norms to make it mandatory for Govt. approval in some specific cases,” Gandhi said in a tweet. With an eye on China, the government has introduced stricter measures to prevent opportunistic takeover of Indian companies due to the situation created by COVID-19.

Earlier, in a tweet on April 12, Gandhi had referred to crisis created by coronavirus and said the government must not allow foreign interests to take control of any Indian corporate.

I thank the Govt. for taking note of my warning and amending the FDI norms to make it mandatory for Govt. approval in some specific cases. https://t.co/ztehExZXNc

— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) April 18, 2020

“The massive economic slowdown has weakened many Indian corporates making them attractive targets for takeovers. The Govt must not allow foreign interests to take control of any Indian corporate at this time of national crisis,” he had said.

A statement issued by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) said that an entity of a country which shares a land border with India can invest only after receiving government approval.

“An entity of a country, which shares a land border with India or where the beneficial owner of investment into India is situated in or is a citizen of any such country, can invest only under the government route,” it said.

The new rules will also apply to the transfer of ownership of any existing or future FDI in an entity in India directly or indirectly, the DPIIT said. (ANI)