Pranab Mukherjee doesn't deserve to be FM: CIO

BANGALORE, INDIA: With all possible signs of finance minister Pranab Mukherjee moving to the Rashtrapati Bhavan, the question now is who will replace him as the finance minister.

Mukherjee has been regarded as one of the brilliant minds in the Manmohan Singh government and credited with steering India to growth when the western economies had collapsed. But, this year he disappointed the corporate industry as he failed to meet its expectations in reforms.

Now, India's economy is in doldrums. Massive slowdown in GDP growth and sluggish growth in exports have weakened investor sentiment leading to a slow capital inflows. At a time when India is in dire need of reforms to push the country towards development, it is being debated as how appropriate it is to make the finance minister as the President, but CIOs of some Indian companies are welcoming the change.

Most vocal was Chandan Sinha of GHCL who says Pranab Mukherjee doesn't deserve to be the finance minister as his strategies were not pro-development and he failed to meet industry's expectations. Pranab is now labelled as the failed finance minister as he was unsuccessful in bringing down the inflation or improve industrial production.

However, it's irrational to say that Pranab becoming the President would change country's prospects for better. It comes with an underlying fear that the same failed policies could be just carried over by the new person.

Davinder Wadehra of SJVN Limited expressed a very balanced view when he said P Chidambaram is the right man to don the mantle of finance minister. "Agreed, the country's economy is in bad shape, but what we can do is only hope for good days as the future of the country is not completely dependent on one person. Whether Pranab is there or not, the country will go on," he said.

Fitch Ratings slashed its credit outlook for India from stable to negative, months after Standard & Poor's made a similar cut. They had warned that India's economy could deteriorate if governance doesn't improve. Now, it is essential that there is an immediate action to reverse country's deteriorating economic conditions. Considering that, some CIOs want Pranab to continue.

"As the country's economic condition is in doldrums, it is appropriate that Pranab Mukherjee continues for some more time at least till things are manageable. Any new person would take time to settle down and the country can't afford so much time," says Balasubramanian, CIO of BEML Limited.

If Pranab has to be replaced, then according to Balasubramanian, C Rangarajan is the right person to occupy the post as he has the experience and comes from Manmohan's school of thought and has the ability to manage country's affairs.