Chidambaram not an economist, only a taxation lawyer: Jaswant

New Delhi, Apr 17 (UNI) Leader of the Oposition in the Rajya Sabha Jaswant Singh today made a jibe at Finance Minister P Chidambaram, saying ''he is not an economist but only an able taxation lawyer.'' Mr Singh, who has earned the reputation of making tongue in cheek remarks said, Mr Chidambaram ''is only nurturing illusions of being an economist, but the fact is that he is only an able taxation lawyer.'' He made this remark while participating in a short duration discussion on the unprecedented price rise in the country. Mr Chidambaram was not present in the House, then.

Turning to the treasury benches, Mr Singh said, ''You people have Mr Chidambaram the Finance Minister so many times that he is nurturing illusions of being an economist. But he is only a taxation lawyer and tends to get lost in the nitty-gritty of taxation matters.'' The BJP leader did not stop at that. ''In fact, there are far too many economists in the government, and it creates a lot of problems.'' UNI SKS Mir RAI1530