NEW DELHI, July 12 (PTI): The BJP on Wednesday hit out at the Congress over its jibe on Foxconn’s withdrawal from a semiconductor joint venture with Indian conglomerate Vedanta, saying the opposition party “loathes” a confident and self-reliant India.
BJP IT department head Amit Malviya said the “split” between the two companies will not affect India’s semiconductor programme and alleged that the Congress is “celebrating” as it actively attempts to scuttle any new initiative India takes and wants India’s ambitious foray into semiconductor manufacturing to be delayed.
The ruling party’s reaction came after the Congress tweeted: “Whether Gujarat Model or ‘New India’ never trust the manufactured headlines”, following the Taiwanese electronics manufacturer on Monday announcing withdrawal from the $ 19.5 billion semiconductor joint venture with mining baron Anil Agarwal’s Vedanta Ltd.
Related Posts:
Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh had said on Twitter, “Remember the publicity at the time of announcing the project? The Gujarat CM even claimed 1 lakh jobs will be created! This has been the fate of many MOUs signed in Vibrant Gujarat summits year after year, and will be the fate in other such copycat summits like Global Investor Summits in UP”.
However, Malviya said the development does not mean Vedanta and Foxconn are moving away from their commitment to participate in India’s semiconductor mission.
In fact, both Foxconn and Vedanta have independently declared their commitment to India’s semiconductor program, he added.
“Foxconn has announced that they are preparing to apply for silicon fab and display fab. Similarly, Vedanta has also committed to reapply with new partners,” Malviya said.
Besides, other “major semiconductor companies” are “seriously” evaluating India as a semiconductor design and manufacturing hub, he added.
“This is bad news for the Congress, which actively attempts to scuttle any new initiative India takes. It is now worried that India’s rise as a semiconductor manufacturing hub will further consolidate its position in the world as a credible player in the technology domain,” the BJP leader charged.
“The Congress loathes a confident and self-reliant India,” he added.
Responding to Foxconn’s decision, Agarwal’s Vedanta Ltd on Monday said it was “fully committed” to its semiconductor fab project and that it has lined up other partners to set up India’s first foundry.
The company, however, did not give details of the new partners.
Foxconn on Tuesday said it is working on plans to apply for incentives under the semiconductor and display fab programme, as the contract manufacturer pledged its commitment to India.
The Taiwanese electronics manufacturing giant also said it has been actively reviewing the landscape for optimal partners.
