Even as the Congress continues to keep the Government guessing on the GST Bill, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Saturday said the BJP-led NDA Government should send the legislation to the Select Committee as it has been modified by the Modi dispensation.
He also expressed concern over the so-called face-off between the RBI and the Government and the controversy over the presstitutes’ remarks of Union Minister VK Singh as he pitched for media’s freedom. Singh, along with Congress president Sonia Gandhi, was present at a ceremony to honour eminent journalist Vinod Mehta posthumously with GK Reddy Memorial National award.
For her part, Congress president attacked the present dispensation at the Centre in her speech wherein she said dissent is being stifled and minorities feel increasingly insecure. “In the present climate, dissent is being stifled, minorities feel increasingly insecure, secular fabric of our society is threatened, bigotry and obscurantism seem to flourish unchecked,” Sonia said.
Singh said that he was always in favour of GST but the present government has distorted the main elements. “We want this to go in the Select Committee. We are always in favour of GST but not the way it has been brought where some of the elements do not reflect well for the state of economy,” Singh told The Pioneer Singh on the sidelines of the event.
When further asked that the Bill has already been through a Standing Committee, Singh emphasised the need for “a legal scrutiny for good reforms”. While the Modi Government has been trying hard to get the GST Bill as one its major economic reforms before NDA completes one year in office, Congress has been demanding another round of legal scrutiny of the Bill.
Congress on Saturday issued a whip for its members in Rajya Sabha where it is in majority. “Please be present positively in Rajya Sabha from 11.00 am onwards on Monday 11th, Tuesday 12th and Wednesday 13th May without fail as some important business will be taken up in the House,” said a communication from leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad to members of the Upper House.
On the recent stand-off between the Finance Ministry and the RBI, Singh said that this is not a good sign and the autonomy of RBI should be intact. “It is not a healthy sign. I have served in RBI and can understand the importance of this great institution. The autonomy should be maintained. I would like the two institutions to work in harmony,” Singh said. The former PM has served RBI as Governor in the 1980s after which he came on to become the Finance Minister in the P V Narasimha Rao government which opened the economy of India.
When asked about the recent remarks against media, Singh said freedom of the press should not be violated as it is very important in a democratic set-up. He was asked about recent attacks on the media by some government functionaries and the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) rating India, along with Pakistan, Sri lanka and Afghanistan among the “worst offenders” in the region in protecting journalists in 2014-15.
Deputy Chairperson of Rajya Sabha PJ Kurien, Deputy leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Anand Sharma, senior Congress leaders Karan Singh, Ahmad Patel and CPI leader D Raja were also present at the award function organised by Rajya Sabha member T Subbarami Reddy , who is also the convenor of the GK Reddy Memorial National Award.