- Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s repeated and uncharacteristic observations on Goods and Services Tax (GST) since the middle of October reveals the political impact of the “historic economic reform” initiated by the NDA government on July 1, 2017.
- The central argument in Modi's repeated assertions was that the introduction of the GST regime was a collective decision of all political parties and State governments and that the Centre only played a small part in the decision-making process. The Central government is only a 30th part in the entire GST Council, he says.
- Modi's pronouncements stood out in contrast to his normal style of speechifying, which is usually marked by self-aggrandisement and claims of great achievements and triumphs in various fields.
- Modi is also known for running down political adversaries in his speeches. But the tone and tenor of the GST-related references were conspicuously defensive, and while adopting this posture Modi also sought to apportion credit or blame, whichever way one wanted to see it, to his political associates and adversaries.
- What he wanted to convey was evident. It was the responsibility for the mess in trade, industry and agrarian sectors caused by the new tax regime and its implementation cannot be placed solely on him or his government and the BJP. These points also flagged a sort of desperation that Modi supposedly does not display under normal circumstances.
- A former Bihar RS member describes this new role-play by Modi as a political act, devious and amusing at the same time. “Here is a man who, in the run-up to Lok Sabha elections in 2013-14, unabashedly took the credit even for Amul Dairy in Anand, Gujarat that was set up in 1946 and nurtured as a successful model since the 1970s under several regimes, including the Congress. Modi was CM of Gujarat only from 2001 to 2014, but he had no qualms about claiming credit for the dairy cooperative movement. So now when he says that you are all partners in GST and his government is only one-30th of GST council, there is little doubt that it is driven by a realisation that the political challenges thrown up by the new tax regime and its implementation are indeed grave.”
- All sections of the population, including traders, industrialists, salaried employees, daily-wage earners and farmers, minced no words in expressing the hardships they had suffered over the past one year, not only on account of GST, but also demonetisation.
- Even supporters of the BJP and RSS outfits, in trade, industrial and agricultural bodies, were critical of the demonetisation-GST continuum.
- “When GST was launched Modi had promised four things. First, there would be a uniform tax structure across the country. Second, it would remove corruption and prevent generation and circulation of black money. Third, the harassment of traders by high-handed officials would come to an end. Fourth, all trade in the country would be documented and receipted. Now, as we see the implementation of GST, not one of these promises is being fulfilled,” a BJP MP from UP said.
- Given our striking infrastructural deficiencies, is it possible to fulfill the digital requirements demanded by the GST regime? The listening quotient of Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, is very low. Out of 62 specific anomalies in the GST structure, just 12 of them have been accepted. Government will have to come around and accept the other 50 too, because they are legitimate demands, strong on facts and reasoning. But every genuine demand is addressed with extreme laxity while arbitrary and ill-thought-out directives emerge out of the big officers of the government. Modi will have to address all this at the earliest and put the government back on track.
- The mess and the unending economic hardships inflicted by demonetisation & GST are now increasingly alienating the poorer classes from the BJP. This situation presents an opportunity for the disparate mainstream and regional opposition parties, including the Congress, Communist Party of India (Marxist), the SP, BSP, the RJD, the DMK, NCP etc, to build a campaign and make it an effective anti-government political weapon.
- If the opposition was able to put up effective campaign on these lines, the Modi-Amit Shah duo, along with RSS, may only have the option of propping up an aggressive Hindutva rhetoric to create a communal divide in the name of the Ayodhya Ram temple or some other polarising issue.
You are a failure when you blame and criticize others for your mistakes.
Stop blaming others and take responsibility.
Owning responsibility is the trait of a statesman.
Owning responsibility is the trait of a statesman.
Modi was elected by people of India to govern them within the framework of constitution and laws of the land for their growth and prosperity. GST seemingly good for all, did immense damage to informal sector, due to flaws in design and implementation. The informal sector accounts for 45% of manufacturing and employ over 117 million people. Unable to migrate into formal sector, half of these companies are either out of business or have gone underground completely. GDP growth rate nose dived to 5.7% (below 6% is considered a catastrophe) from what otherwise should have been around 9.5%. Instead of owning up responsibility and taking corrective steps PM & FM (Modi & Jaitley) resorting to passing on the buck is definitely a catastrophe for India. While steep fall in economic indices happen due to self inflicted injuries, recovery is painfully slow and will happen over next several years. Modi is disastrous Prime Minister of India ever had, better than only VP Singh in 1989. Modi, a egoistic and fame hungry, will not accept defeats but will continue to make reckless adventures (political & otherwise) for his survival. The worst fear is BJP invoking 'Hindutva' which will divide, polarize India on communal lines. Repetition of 1992 Babri Masjid demolition like things are not ruled out. If that happens, economy will end up in shambles.
