Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, June 8: Though ruling Alliance of PDP and BJP enjoyed comfortable majority in both Houses of the Legislature to get Goods and Services Tax (GST) through during Special Session from June 17 to 20, the Opposition parties including National Conference have geared up to corner the Government for not even discussing draft legislation with them. They have called for deferring the session, holding the All Party Meeting (APM) on the GST and then taking a decision on implementation of legislation in Jammu and Kashmir.
On the other, ruling coalition partners, PDP and BJP have committed themselves to passing the GST with consensus citing that the Government didn’t take Ordinance route and instead called the Special Session of the Legislature to discuss and debate every provision of the draft legislation before passing it.
The Centre Government proposed to roll out GST countrywide on July 1.
After the State Cabinet yesterday approved the draft legislation of the GST and called Special Session of the Legislature on June 17, the National Conference, which is major Opposition party in the State, held its Core Group meeting in Srinagar under the leadership of party working president and former Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and called for deferring the Special Session, holding an All Party Meeting and talking to all stakeholders on the GST.
Describing GST as “against interests of Jammu and Kashmir” as it would hit the people including the traders, the NC Core Group recalled that Finance Minister Dr Haseeb Drabu had himself opposed the GST when he was not the Minister and quoted his writing that said: ‘Come GST and neither the State Legislature nor the State Cabinet will have a say on J&K Taxation’.
“The Finance Minister must come clean on the issue and not hoodwink the people of the State,” the NC Core Group observed.
Chaired by Omar, the NC Core Group meeting was attended among others by Ali Mohammad Sagar, Mohammad Shafi Uri, Abdul Rahim Rather, Mohammad Akbar Lone, Chaudhary Ramzan, Devender Singh Rana, Nasir Aslam Wani and SS Oberoi.
Another major Opposition party in Jammu and Kashmir, the Congress has taken exception to the State Government decision not to evolve consensus or take Opposition on board on implementation of GST in the State.
State Congress chief GA Mir said it was the Congress, which had brought GST at the national level when it was in power and the BJP, which was in Opposition then, had opposed it.
“However, as far as Jammu and Kashmir is concerned, the State has special status. As the Government neither shared the draft legislation of GST with us nor an All Party Meeting has been called before Special Session, we have been left with no option but to study the draft legislation in the Assembly itself and take a decision on what suits the interest of the State and what not,” Mir told the Excelsior.
On the other, the Alliance partners, PDP and BJP were of the view that the GST has been drafted in such a way that interests of Jammu and Kashmir have been very well protected and there shouldn’t be any objection to any political party in passing it. Moreover, they said, the Government has called three-day Special Session of the Legislature to give enough time to all the legislators to debate the bill and give their suggestions before it is passed.
Sources said the Government was open to incorporate good suggestions that come from the Opposition in the bill during debate in the Legislature.
“The Government hasn’t taken the Ordinance route. It’s a rare of rarest occasion when the Special Session has been called to discuss and debate the bill before approval. We are open to the suggestions in the Legislature,” Government sources said.
However, according to sources, if the Opposition tries to create “unnecessary uproar” in the Legislature, the Government has numbers to get the bill through on its own. Sources said a simple majority is required for passing the bill and PDP-BJP Alliance has nearly two-third majority in both Houses of the Legislature.
CPM MLA MY Tarigami said it was good that the Government hasn’t taken the Ordinance route on the GST and called Special Session of the Legislature, which would lead to debate on all aspects of the bill.
However, Tarigami said, Jammu and Kashmir being a consumer society, the Government had to watch interests of the common man and the traders.
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