Indian PM may wait for land, labour reforms

Bloomberg

PM Narendra Modi has once again taken control of India’s lower house of parliament. But it’s the upper house, which has thwarted him in the past, that might now define his reform agenda — and his position there is set to improve.
That could place long-awaited but politically controversial land and labour reforms back on the political agenda, a move that would be welcomed by investors in a country where it is notoriously difficult to acquire land.
Modi’s thumping victory in India’s election, which saw the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party win 303 seats in the 543-member parliament. That’s provided him with a single party majority and raised expectations that he will turn to reforms that eluded him in his first term in office. But like in his first term, Modi’s party still lacks the majority required in the upper house to pass controversial legislation.
The make up of the upper house is determined by the performance of political parties in India’s state assemblies. In his first term, Modi struggled to push legislation that would make it easier to hire and fire workers and buy farmers’ land.