Tuesday, August 19, 2008

Should we prepare for a 70s rerun ?

The present government has successfully moved India back to the nineties.

Would the next government takes us back to the seventies ? By that I mean
  • Will our taxes sky rocket ?( Marginal Tax rate was as high as 97.5% in 1971 !)
  • Will ULCA, FERA and other such acts make a comeback ?
  • Will banks be nationalized once more ?
  • Will Gold controls be reimposed ( I know it is a late 60s act rather than a 70s one )
  • Will possessing 1000 rupee notes become illegal again ?
Whether we move back to the seventies or bounce back to the noughties would depend on who comes to power. My guess would be
  • A Congress/Left would push us back to the seventies,
  • A Congress/Riff Raff would slowly move us in the direction of the noughties
  • A Congress majority would put us clearly in the noughties
  • A BJP/Riff Raff combo would also move us in the noughties direction
  • A BJP majority would put us clearly in the noughties
  • A Riff Raff with outside support from either the Congress/BJP would leave us in status quo ( i.e stuck firmly in the nineties)
  • A Riff Raff/Left combo could even take us back to the seventies in double quick time
Just my opinion. As usual feel free to disagree.