What is White Paper that Modi government is likely to table in Parliament?

The Budget session of Parliament has been extended by a day untill 10 February, Saturday.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi said on Tuesday, 6 February that the government will table a “White Paper” comparing the state of the Indian economy before and after 2014, when the BJP came to power after defeating the Congress.

With agenda items like the Finance Bill, budget discussion, and demand for grants yet to be taken up by Parliament and the White Paper also to be tabled, PTI sources had said it was considered necessary to extend the session’s duration by a day.

While announcing the extension, Speaker Om Birla said, “Honourable Members, Honourable Minister of Parliamentary Affairs has proposed that the 15th session of the 17th Lok Sabha be extended till Saturday, 10 February 2024 to dispose of the necessary government business.”

What is a White Paper?

A White Paper is a government document that highlights new policies, issues, and accomplishments and is based on facts and research. Stanford Law School says the document can be accessed by the public.

The Stanford Law School defines a White Paper as “an authoritative report or guide that often addresses issues and how to solve them”. Thus, it is “used in politics and business, as well as in technical fields, to educate readers and help people make decisions”.

During its tenure, the government may decide at any time to issue White Papers on any topic, according to News18.

In 1922, following the riots in the Jaffa region, then-British Prime Minister Winston Churchill published one of the first White Papers outlining his government’s strategy on Palestine.

What is the purpose of the document?

The White Paper will probably include several segments, including trade, monetary, fiscal, and exchange rate policy, as well as demonstrate, evaluate, and evaluate the Indian government’s overall economic policy over the years, as per another report by News18.

Standing Committee on Finance chairperson Jayant Sinha on Wednesday, according to News18, said, “India’s GDP growth had slowed down to five per cent, inflation had risen to ten per cent, NPAs of banks had risen to ten per cent. The country was facing balance of payment crisis.”

The BJP MP from Jharkhand’s Hazaribagh added that it is “necessary that we present before the people that how a change has set in into the economy… There were deficiencies in every sector… If the economy is shining today and going ahead rapidly, it is due to our policies and work in these 10 years.”

How often do governments present it?

There are no specific rules regarding the issuance or tabling of White Papers in the Lok Sabha’s Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business.

Furthermore, there are no regulations dictating how frequently a government must publish a White Paper, according to Indian Express.

To date, the government led by Modi has released two White Papers: one on the revenue model for the railways in August 2014, and the other on the rationalisation of freight and fares.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present the latest “White Paper” to highlight the country’s poor economic condition when the Congress-led UPA left power, as often charged by the government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and how the incumbent dispensation brought the turn around. She will table it in both Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha, reported PTI.

Parliament usually does not function on weekends but there have been instances in the past when the Houses have met on Saturdays.

During her presentation of the interim Budget 2024–25 in Parliament, she said that India’s economy was in “crisis” in 2014, the year the Modi government took power, and blamed previous governments for the “mismanagement.” “The crisis of those years has been overcome, and the economy has been put firmly on a high sustainable growth path with all-round development,” the finance minister said during her speech on 1 February. She announced that the government will lay a White Paper on the table of the House “to look at where we were then till 2014 (during Congress-led government) and where we are now, only for the purpose of drawing lessons from the mismanagement of those years.”

Who else can present it?

According to News18, state assemblies have the right to present White Papers. In a recent White Paper, Telangana chief minister Revanth Reddy accused K Chandrashekar Rao’s BRS government of mismanaging the state, claiming that the state debt increased from Rs 76,000 crore to Rs 6 lakh crore under his leadership.

Last year in July, the BJP had asked the Chhattisgarh Congress administration for a White Paper on buying grain from farmers.

As it has done numerous times recently, the Opposition also has the right to demand a White Paper from the government on matters regarding which it is unclear. According to Indian Express, on Tuesday, Opposition Rajya Sabha MPs demanded a White Paper from the current government on the matter of recovering black money.

“The Panama and Pandora Papers revealed the names of thousands of rich Indians who had parked black money in different tax havens. I demand a White Paper from the government on this issue. No more empty promises, let the people know,” Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Md Nadimul Haque said during his address on the Motion of Thanks to the President’s Address.

What kind of response is Opposition planning?

In response to the “White Paper,” the Congress is expected to present a “Black Paper” on the Modi government’s decade in office, according to ANI, which cited its sources.

The Black Paper is probably going to be presented by party president Mallikarjun Kharge.

Former FM P Chidambaram earlier made a statement that the Congress would reply to the White Paper as soon as it was introduced in Parliament and that it had no fear of it.

Leader of Congress in Lok Sabha, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury told ANI, “But Mehul Choksi’s papers should also be brought to the House. Why are banks looted under their government? What is their relation with those who loot banks and run away abroad?”

RJD MP Manoj Jha said that “White Paper will turn into a white elephant,” while adding, “White paper means you can specify the number of jobs given… Where have you reached? So this isn’t White Paper but a white elephant just before the elections."

Earlier, while speaking to reporters, DMK MP Dayanidhi Maran had said, “The Finance Minister took a long time to hail praises but delivery was zero. They are going to present a White Paper on the previous government… Nothing much has happened in the last 10 years. The people of the country are already disappointed. Moreover, you realise that performance incentives are given to the bridge companies, and not going to the deserving ones. People are rejected with this budget.”

With inputs from agencies