“We (Congress) are ready to cooperate
with the BJP over GST. But we have our differences. We want a cap on
tax, and do not want the poor in the country to be taxed,” Gandhi told
media outside the Parliament House.
Gandhi added that his party was the one which introduced GST draft legislation earlier.
Gandhi made the comments when he was
asked about Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s invitation to Congress
leaders Sonia Gandhi, Rahul himself and Manmohan Singh to meet over tea
on Friday evening, with the GST on the agenda.
Meanwhile, Minister of State for Finance
Jayant Sinha said on Friday the central government is seeking a
consensus on the issue of levy of one percent additional tax for the
proposed goods and services tax (GST).
“There are many opinions on the one
percent tax on GST…states have another perspective on this,” Sinha told
reporters on the sidelines of an event here by the Centre for Digital
Financial Inclusion.
“We have to find a consensus on this.
The finance minister has said we are in continuous consultations,
particularly with opposition parties and are willing to consider any
reasonable suggections,” Sinha said, adding that the situation arrived
at this point was the result of continuous discussions with states and
other stakeholders.
The central government has set the
target for GST implementation from April next year, but the bill is
currently stuck in parliament, especially over the cabinet’s nod to some
changes recommended by a parliamentary panel, notably an extra one
percent levy to compensate the states for potential tax losses.
