IFC to take some time to be enacted: Chidambaram

I suggest the Ministry of Finance and the regulatory agencies may look seriously at operationalising some of these elements at the earliest even within the scope of the present laws, he said at a seminar of the Institute of Company Secretaries of India,adding that the current financial sector statutory framework is fragmented and disparate. The IFC,drafted by the Financial Sector Legislative Reforms Commission (FSLRC),has called for replacing the current regulatory regime with an omnibus legislation to regulate the financial sector.

The committee,led by former Supreme Court judge,Justice BN Srikrishna,had submitted its report,including the draft code to the finance minister in March this year.

But Chidambaram said that implementing the code presents a challenge at three levels. Passing legislation in India is not easy with coalitions and the legitimisation of obstruction as a parliamentary tactic, he said,adding that the government would also have to go in for a massive capacity building exercise and recruit as well as train a large number of financial sector professionals. Lastly,the transition from the current to the proposed regulatory regime would also be very complex,he said.

The minister was also sounded a note of caution on proposals such as an omnibus regulation for the whole financial sector and said,I am not sure how much of this law will go through in the same fashion when it emerges finally from Parliament.

While acknowledging the dissent by four members of the 10 members committee,Chidambaram said the finance ministry too will have to embark on concerted efforts to get public comments on the FSLRC report. In this context,he asked his officials to begin inter-departmental and inter-agency consultations on the report as well as seek feedback from stakeholders and experts.