Amidst GST standoff, Narendra Modi reaches out to Manmohan Singh, Sonia Gandhi

Soon after Prime Minister Narendra Modi reached out to the Opposition, saying consensus was more important than majority rule, he hosted his predecessor Manmohan Singh and Congress president Sonia Gandhi at his residence to find a way out of the deadlock over legislations like the Goods and Services Tax (GST) bill.

This was the first such move by Modi ever since he took over as Prime Minister 18 months ago. While a consensus still eluded the two sides on the GST, government sources described the meeting as a “good beginning”.

Congress leaders said they would not climb down from their stand, but welcomed the Prime Minister’s efforts. The meeting was also attended by finance minister Arun Jaitley and parliamentary affairs minister Venkaiah Naidu.

Gandhi is understood to conveyed her party's non-negotiable points on GST – 18% cap on the tax in the Act, independent dispute resolution mechanism and withdrawal of giving powers to states to impose additional 1% tax on supply of goods over and above GST rate. On his part, Jaitley explained the government’s position on these concerns, after which Gandhi said she would talk to her party colleagues, according to sources. Naidu said they will meet again to discuss the matter.

Over the next two days, Naidu will talk to leaders of Congress in both houses – Malikarjun Kharge and Ghulam Nabi Azad.

Government tried to convince Congress to give up on capping the tax through constitutional amendment, sources told dna. The government was of the view that in case of emergency or a war, it would be difficult to return to Parliament and amend the constitution for raising tax bar. The government is, however, ready to put a bar in the Act, or incorporate emergency powers to the government.

Jaitley said there would be a fresh round of talks after Congress discusses it within the party and after government also considered their position.

While appreciating PM’s gesture, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi said the government had been forced to take that step. “This meeting is happening after public pressure. Otherwise, this is not the way he (Modi) functions,” said Rahul.

He said the Congress does not want the common man to suffer, the reason why the party has demanded a cap on the tax.

The government wants to implement GST by April 2016, but the deadline may be missed if Parliament does not pass the bill in the winter session. The GST will create a single market in India after doing away with state levies and is expected to boost the economy.

Jaitley on Thursday had told TV channels that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is willing to speak to everyone to get the landmark indirect tax law through. "We have absolutely no hesitation even at the level of Prime Minister, we have never had in it in the past, we don't have it (now). He is willing to speak to everyone," he said.

Jaitley however added a caveat that "in the process of a political compromise, India cannot have a GST with a flawed architecture. Once you amend the Constitution, it is going to take decades to correct those errors." Asked if he has spoken to Rahul Gandhi on the GST bill, Jaitley said, "Why should I make public any discussion I have had. I am at a stage where I am discussing with every leader of every political party and I am not supposed to disclose what conversation took place. You should be interested in eventual result."

He said he was "extremely hopeful" of the GST bill being passed in the month-long winter session of Parliament that commenced on Thursday.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu expressed similar hope claiming 30 of the 32 parties are in support of the GST bill. "We are making efforts for its passage. The public mood is almost one-sided in favour of the GST," he said.