Insurance Bill is against national interest: Left

NEW DELHI: Accusing the UPA government of working out a bailout package for bankrupt US insurance companies, CPI(M) leader Brinda Karat on Monday said that the insurance Bill is not in the interest of the nation.

"We opposed the insurance Bill because it was not in the interest of the country. Government is trying to bailout the bankrupt insurance industries in the US by inviting them to come here," Karat said.

The government introduced the Insurance Law (Amendment) Bill, 2008 in the Rajya Sabha seeking a hike in the foreign direct investment (FDI) in the insurance sector.

Terming the Bill as "black law" Karat said everywhere in the world governments are opting for regulatory regime, but alleged that the government here is trying to deregulate the sector.

The Bill proposes to raise foreign equity in Indian insurance companies from 26 per cent to 49 per cent.

Renewing Left's strong opposition to the Bill, CPI leader D Raja said the Congress-led UPA government is betraying the legacy of Indira Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru who were all for PSUs.

The Government is trying to help multinational companies at the cost of our PSUs through this Bill, Raja said and added the Bill would adversely affect insurance sector of the country and "we should not weaken our PSUs", Raja said.