In signs of a thaw between the Centre and opposition parties on the long-pending GST Bill, the government is likely to introduce it in Parliament on Wednesday, informed Finance Ministry sources.
This development comes after the BJP issued a whip to its Rajya Sabha members to be present in the House for the next three days.
The government has listed the Bill in the agenda for this week for consideration and passage.
On July 27, the Cabinet had cleared changes in the legislation, dropping the controversial one per cent manufacturing tax and providing guarantee to compensate states for any revenue loss in the first five years of rollout of the ambitious indirect tax regime.
As the Monsoon Session of Parliament ends on August 12, the government is running against the clock to bring in the crucial bill.
The bill was passed by the Lok Sabha in May 2015 and vetted by the Rajya Sabha Select Committee.
However, the measure got stuck in the Upper House where the government does not have majority of its own, as the main opposition Congress sought certain changes in it.
Government is making efforts to hammer out a consensus on the bill and reaching out to opposition parties. Congress has, however, described the exercise as “constructive and positive”.
The GST legislation, which intends to convert 29 states into a single market through a new indirect tax regime, was earlier planned to be introduced from April 1 this year, but the deadline was missed as the legislation to roll it out remained in limbo in the Opposition-dominated Rajya Sabha.
