Finance Minister Arun Jaitely has stated that government is bringing legal changes to control excessive judicial activism that hammers investment sentiments. The FM was speaking to the US business community in New York.
Mr Jaitely has attributed excessive judicial activism for some of the unrest in the investment front. “Excessive” judicial interference is not investor-friendly. The government is thinking about changes in the laws to streamline the judicial process on this matter.
He was referring some of the cases were the government was dragged into international settlement mechanisms and bilateral investment treaty bindings due to overstepped verdicts.
Referring about the adverse effects of judicial activism in investment matters, the Finance Minister informed that the government is bringing some corrective measures to minimize the damage.
Some of the “interventionist judgments” of the courts have been examined by the government and the Law Commission and needed changes have been suggested in the country’s dispute redress laws.
The Finance Minister rated India’s legal system as “somewhat slow”. At the same time, its “excessive interference or a tendency to have excessive judicial interference is not necessarily a move which is friendly to the interest of investors.”
He also ruled out retrospective tax legislations by the government to allay the fear of international investors on India.
Mr Jaitely told that retrospective decisions that create fresh liabilities are unacceptable for the government.
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