For my part, I finally found policy agreement with the Modi government, and I think they should stand firm against the protestors. I still wish they wouldn’t keep throwing the “anti-national” slur willy nilly, but that’s too much to expect when ordinary people (e.g., in my family) are doing the same.

As for the economic liberals in the public eye, yeah, they seem to be playing a hypocritical political game. But is that really a surprise? In India, you are nothing if you don’t have a bunch of people (or a party) backing you, and standing on principle will leave you alone to be kicked about by everyone else. Building a party that promotes economic liberty is also very tough because our electorate is very conservative and has very few individualists.

I dont have a problem with that. The point i am making is the people who shill on BJP of not being bold enough are exactly the same people who call themselves economic liberals and have worked for the Congress party in the past.

I mean if its not obvious the lack of spine shown by economic liberals in the current farm crisis should amply show u how shallow economic liberals in India really are.

https://twitter.com/APanagariya/status/1339913825445883905

“Last two Chief Economic Advisors under UPA, K Basu and R Rajan, both supported even the entry of foreign retailers in Agri marketing. They have now changed their position. Are they right? Here is my detailed critique of critics of the new laws.”

When has the Congress been friendly to economic liberalism? Manmohan Singh in his 2004-2014 avatar was beyond hopeless.

Why this burden of expectation from a party which has hardly ruled a decade than the one which ruled for 5 decades.

That’s a weird framing. Economic liberalism is not optional, it is indispensable. Without it, India will continue to remain a poor backward country with crappy infrastructure and a poor average standard of living. Asking for economically liberal policies is not like asking for a space program.

Why can’t Economic liberals find their homes in the Congress party? Isn’t Manmohan Singh our miracle economic reform-in-chief? At least our twitter ‘where are the big bang reforms’ economist think so.

Why this burden of expectation from a party which has hardly ruled a decade than the one which ruled for 5 decades.

It was only by chance that former Swatantra Party members like Jaswant Singh and committed free marketers like Arun Shourie came to occupy prominent posts in a BJP administration. That period is over and done with. Economic liberals (however few there may be in India) would do well to take this information to heart.