NDA Govt. compromising on GST Bill to achieve a regional alliance, says CPI (M)

Communist Party of India (Marxist) general secretary Sitaram Yechury on Wednesday said the NDA Government is compromising on the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Bill for the purposes of forming a regional alliance.

"The way the BJP today is looking for an alliance, it wants the support of the regional parties in Parliament. If they allow the GST, then a regional party in Tamil Nadu will go against it. So, they are not doing it and accusing the opposition. They are compromising for regional alliance," Yechury told ANI.

"He (Arun Jaitley) has said a special session will be called, but he did not call it. He had all the rights to call it. He did not prorogue the Parliament, only adjourned it sine die. Now, the prorogue has been made. So, if he wants, we will discuss about it," said Yechury.

Yechury further said that his party had given its dissent on the report of the select committee that was formed in the Rajya Sabha and that needs to be presented there so that a decision on the Bill is made based on arguments.

"No one knows what the government did after the discussion. There is no information whether it is bringing any change in the law. It promised to discuss the matter with the states. They say they have done it," he added.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Wednesday expressed confidence that the GST Bill would be implemented by April 1, 2016.

"I would like to see the GST being implemented by 1st April," Jaitley said while speaking at the Economist India Summit here.