For the GST bill too, the consent of two biggest parties in Parliament looks essential for its smooth sail. The Finance Minister will meet with the leaders of the Congress in Parliament before the session kicks off on Monday. The Congress also wants an independent dispute settlement mechanism, the government is flexible on this issue.
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Leaders of all parties in Parliament today called for a productive monsoon session that begins tomorrow but the Kashmir churn, events in Arunachal and India’s abortive bid to enter a global nuclear group could provide the fireworks, at least in the Rajya Sabha. “We are confident that all parties will take decisions on important issues with one voice”, Naqvi said.
Another Congress leader Jyotiraditya Scindia said his party can take a stand only after it receives a written response from the government as he played down talks between its leaders and union ministers over the GST.
The Prime Minister said all political parties are representative of the people and, therefore, national issues should be kept above everything else.
In addition to the meetings between the finance minister Arun Jaitly, with the leader of the Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad and Anand Sharma, this morning Prime Minister Narendra Modi took the initiative to break the ice with Congress President Sonia Gandhi. If it happens, it would be the first such meeting since November, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi met with Congress president Sonia Gandhi and former prime minister Manmohan Singh.
Asked if the Congress was softening its position, Sharma said the party was willing to move ahead if the government could address its concerns. “The meetings will continue”, parliamentary affairs minister Ananth Kumar told reporters.
According to official sources, the government will hold more meetings with Opposition parties to build a consensus on the GST bill.
“Situation in Jammu and Kashmir is a very serious issue, it must be discussed in parliament and the government should be answerable”, Azad said. The government floor managers believe there is more or less consensus on the bill from the key regional parties like Trinamool Congress, Janata Dal-United and Samajwadi Party.
Referring to introduction of GST, he noted that the issue was not about which government would get the credit for its introduction but the bill’s passage. After months of squabbling, the NDA government and the Congress are on the same page on two of the three main points raised by the Opposition party.
Under pressure to deliver on economic growth and jobs, the government is hoping that the tax reform legislation would make the country an easier place to do business and fuel investment.
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The bills that are listed to be taken up for discussion and passage in the Lok Sabha are the Indian Medical Council (Amendment) Ordinance, 2016, which will replace an ordinance, and the Dentists (Amendment) Ordinance, 2016, which will also replace an ordinance.
