New Delhi: Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Wednesday dismissed Subramanian Swamy's attack on Chief Economic Adviser Arvind Subramanian and strongly defended him saying the government has full confidence in him and his advice is of "great value" to it.
"Well, the government has full confidence in CEA Arvind Subramanian. His advice to government from time to time has been of great value.
"In fact, also the presentation on textiles made just now (at the media briefing on Cabinet decisions) on textiles and garments sector was prepared in active consultation with him," Jaitley said backing Subramanian, who has become the next high-profile target of Swamy after RBI chief Raghuram Rajan.
Referring to the party's statement distancing itself from Swamy's latest attack, the minister said even the BJP does not concur with Swamy's views. "They have said they do not share Swamy's view," he added.
Read: After Rajan exit, Swamy wants Arvind Subramanian to be sacked
Jaitley said he would also add one more fact and raised a question.
"From the point of view of discipline of Indian politicians, to what extent should we attack those... discipline and constraints of office prevent them from responding. And this has happened more than once," he said.
Asked by a reporter whether people like Swamy should not be reined in, Jaitley shot back "thank you for your suggestion".
As opposition Congress saw Swamy's real target in Jaitley, IT and Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad responded saying, "integrity of Arun Jaitley is impeccable. His transparency and integrity is unquestionable."
Asked for his comments on Rajan not seeking a second term because the government did not defend him in face of Swamy's attack, Jaitley said, "The premise of the question is incorrect. I had categorically spoken on this subject when the comments were made about the RBI Governor. Even party president had specifically stated that party does not agree with that comment which was made."
The NDA government had in October, 2014 appointed IIM-Ahmedabad allumnus Subramanian as CEA in the Finance Ministry.
Jaitley made the comments when reporters at the scheduled media briefing to announce Cabinet decisions asked about Swamy's remarks against CEA.
Earlier, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was reportedly taken aback by Subramanian Swamy’s latest salvo, fired at Chief Economic Adviser Arvind Subramanian.
According to a report, as Swamy demanded Subramanian’s sacking just a few days after concluding a volley of attacks on RBI governor Raghuram Rajan, the BJP sought to brush the matter under the carpet.
"That's his opinion. We do not have to say anything," Gopal Krishna Agarwal, BJP spokesperson for economic issues, was quoted as saying.
"This is his statement. You can ask him, he is an MP. Party has nothing to say on this," Agarwal added.
But another BJP member reportedly revealed the party’s unease over the matter. "This is obviously not the official line of the party. If that was the case, he (Arvind Subramanian) would not be there. It is for the boss to really rein him in”.
The member added that the government and BJP did not need the public utterances of any member to decide the continuance of any functionary in his job.
The Finance Ministry on Wednesday defended Subramanian’s appointment, saying it knew of his stance on key issues like IPR before hand. The government had taken a considered view when it appointed the former IMF economist as CEA, sources in the ministry said.
But the BJP also seems to have put the onus of contradicting Swamy on Arvind Subramanian himself, according to the report.
Read: Finance Ministry officials defend Arvind Subramanian's appointment
Staying true to his promise of training guns on bureaucrats 'loyal' to the Congress, BJP leader Subramanian Swamy on Wednesday said that he wants Chief Economic Advisor Arvind Subramanian to be sacked, as he had badmouthed India in the international arena and also encouraged Congress to become rigid on their GST Bill clauses.
"Who said to US Cong on 13/3/13 the
Swamy's attack comes in the wake of reports stating Arvind Subramanian being among the probable successors of Rajan as the country's central bank chief.
Read: Is Modi handing over Finance Ministry to Subramanian Swamy: Congress
Swamy tweeted, "Now PTs (Patriotic Tweeples) can understand why our core economic sectors could not perform last two years. Trojan horses galore in MoF/Fin Institutions."
The senior BJP leader also said that he has a list of 27 people with him and he will 'fix' them soon.
This development comes days after Swamy announced that his next 'project' is to expose a group of bureaucrats loyal to Congress President Sonia Gandhi.
