Central Hall to welcome GST with a starry event
What's the story
The Centre is getting ready to welcome GST with a 'gong' and the biggest names will bear attendance to the event. Central Hall where this will take place will see President Pranab Mukherjee and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Former prime ministers Manmohan Singh and H D Deva Gowda too are invited to this mega-event, that will dramatically change the economy.
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A celebratory session for GST
The GST midnight session is in itself celebratory. This will be the 3rd time such a session is taking place. The first took place in 1992, to mark the 50th anniversary of the Quit India movement and when 50th Independence Day was celebrated.
30 Jun 2017
Congress, TMC, RJD and Communists to miss GST event
The GST is set to be launched but the Opposition is giving this glittery event a miss. The Congress said it had taken the decision after consulting Manmohan Singh and Sonia Gandhi. After Congress, even TMC, DMK, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) decided to boycott the special program on GST in Parliament's Central Hall. Communist Party too will not attend the event.
Opposition
Much ado about nothing: What opposition thinks of midnight session
Opposing politicians see the special midnight session as Modi's way of making a spectacle for his accomplishments. D Raja from the CPI said the joint session was nothing but a "drama by the Modi government". Congress's senior leader Ghulam Nabi Azad said that midnight sessions marked freedom anniversaries which have "no relevance for BJP because they played no role in freedom struggle".
Jaitley
Jaitley urges Opposition to not boycott the launch
Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley asked the opposition parties to rethink their decision to forgo the midnight GST launch. He said that the parties had been consulted on the GST tax reform and "cannot run away from it". The Congress and Communists alike are of the opinion that the government is "hurrying" into introducing GST.