Naidu calls Azad, and seeks Congress support for GST

Hopes of passage of the goods and services tax (GST) constitutional amendment during the monsoon session of Parliament that begins on Monday have brightened, with the government reaching out to the Congress party in earnest.

On Thursday, information minister Venkaiah Naidu spoke to opposition head in the Rajya Sabha, Ghulam Nabi Azad.

The Bill, passed by the Lok Sabha, is pending in the Rajya Sabha, where the government is in a minority.

The Congress wants three changes. It insist on a GST cap of 18 per cent as part of the constitutional amendment. The government has argued this would make future amendments to the cap very cumbersome. Earlier this week, Congress leaders indicated they might agree to a cap in the enabling GST Bill and not the constitutional amendment. On Wednesday, party seniors had discussed general strategy for the Parliament session, including on GST, with Congress chief Sonia Gandhi.  

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has tasked Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, Naidu and parliamentary affairs minister Ananth Kumar to reach out to opposition parties and build a consensus.

Goyal to meet Jayalalithaa
In a related development, minister for coal, power, new and renewable energy, Piyush Goyal, is slated to meet Tamil Nadu chief minister and All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) chief J Jayalalithaa in Chennai on Friday evening. The meeting assumes significance as the government is trying to persuade the AIADMK to support the GST Bill. Jayalalithaa has sought central assistance to help out with Tamil Nadu's mounting power dues. She had met prime minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi in mid-June.