Arun Jaitley served up a Rand-Marx khichri in his Budget

Every Union Budget evokes strong reaction – either it is cheered as the most revolutionary or as a wasted opportunity. The latest one was no different. Truth often lies somewhere in the middle.

It is normal for a businessman to grant full marks in public and complain in private that it doesn’t move the needle much. Opposition politicians would rubbish as “anti-poor” even if welfare programmes are funded well.

Pleasing everyone is impossible. Does it aim to deliver benefits to the vast majority of the population? Are there ideas to correct past mistakes and lay the foundation for better days?

Lobbyists for those with capital would peddle that higher tax on the rich is the end of investment cycle, and pro-poor would cheer the higher allocation for employment generation programmes and lower tax rates on less privileged.

Minister Jaitley wore the hat of an investment banker when he proposed the consolidation of oil companies. They may not match the giants like BP Plc. or Shell, but a beginning has been made. But going by the pace of merger in banking, there is enough reason to believe it is not going to happen anytime soon.

There is a need to extend this to other sectors such as steel, ports, mining, and others as well since there is little justification for a shareholder to own many companies in the same business that eliminates the economies of scale.

Many entities for identical businesses is a legacy of regional and personality politics where businesses were favours to a community, or a region.

While abolition of Planning Commission is the most symbolic act to break from the socialist past, the plan to disband the Foreign Investment Promotion Board is another act of symbolism to reduce bureaucracy.

Ban on cash transactions above Rs 3 lakh is probably revolutionary, but least appreciated because of the belief in the ingenuity of men who could work around it.

There are some intrigues as well. While the message on corruption and ease of business is clear, the role of public sector is still a gray area.

Political compulsions may be forcing a gradualist approach on public-sector companies. But for a government that needs resources without compromising on fiscal prudence, the thought of selling out accidental ownership of Larsen & Toubro, Axis Bank and ITC not arising is a mystery. More so when British American Tobacco (BAT) which has been waiting in the wings to take control of ITC. BAT just agreed buy Reynolds American, a US tobacco company, for $49 billion.

Arun Jaitley, who started his political career as a socialist during the Jayaprakash Narayan movement, has evolved into a pro-business politician along with the Bharatiya Janata Party. But he has served up an Ayn Rand and Karl Marx khichri in his budget.

(Views expressed are personal)