Ahead of Winter Session of Parliament, govt reaches out to Opposition

Govt has appealed to all parties to pass GST Bill in Winter Session of Parliament, said Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu after all party meet. He said govt is aware of Opposition concerns like Dadri killing.

We are ready for debate on everything in the Parliament, let there be debate not disruption, said Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Wednesday.

BJP's Parliamentary Party Executive and NDA constituents will also meet at Prime Minister Narendra Modi's residence to firm up strategy for the upcoming Winter Session this evening.

Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan will also hold a separate meeting with leaders of all political parties in the evening to seek their cooperation in proper functioning of the House.

During nearly month-long session, around 30 bills, including GST and Real Estate regulation Bills, are slated to be taken up for consideration and passing.

Amid indications of a tough session ahead, senior ministers on Tuesday huddled to chalk out the strategy and work out floor coordination plans while parties like Congress, JDU and CPI-M made their intent clear, deciding to give notices for debate on the issue of intolerance and attacking Government on the key reform measure of GST.

The government is in full mood to implement GST by April 2016, but the deadline may be missed if Parliament does not pass the bill in the Winter Session.

"We have introduced the GST bill in Parliament and are hopeful of rolling it out in 2016," said Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Singapore on Tuesday.

Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said on Tuesday that he was willing to reach out to the Congress on the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Bill, but added the party that ruled India for almost half-a-century must not pursue a model that would create a defective tax regime.It would be unfair to the country to impose, in the name of compromise, a defective GST," Mr. Jaitley said in his valedictory address at an annual event of Assocham. "I will expect the party which ruled India for almost half-a-century to reconsider some of the suggestions. Some of their suggestions are not in the larger interests of GST," he said.

Former finance minister P Chidambaram tweeted in response to Arun Jaitley's remark, "FM's confrontational speech at ASSOCHAM not the best way to reach out to opposition on GST."