Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi on Saturday said that his party would help pass the Goods and Services Taxes (GST) Bill in Parliament in just "15 minutes", provided the government accepts the three conditions set by the party.
"We want a cap of 18% on the maximum tax. We also want a cap on additional tax on inter-state sales. Also, dispute resolution must be fair and neutral. I don't think it's wrong of us to say that," he said.
Over 400 MBA students and professors were present at at the session in Narsee Monji Institute of Management Studies, Vile Parle.
Replying to a student on the roadblocks in the implementation of the GST Bill, Gandhi said: "It was the Congress which brought the GST legislation. The BJP then stopped it in Parliament for seven years. Jaitley and Narendra Modi, the then CM of Gujarat, did not allow it to pass."
"Jaitley doesn't have to tell me GST is good. I know it's good," Gandhi said. "
Replying to a query on the poor quality of India's education sector, where none of its institutes ranked among the top 200, Gandhi said: "Who ranks these institutes? It is the US. If you were to rank the institutes, which schools would be in the top 200? India should also start ranking institutes as each school has its own dna and heart. We can't replicate someone else's model here."
Replying to a query related to India's security, Gandhi told the young gathering: "The main reason behind our present situation in economy and diplomacy is that everything in the present government is being done by 3-4 people. They don't consult sector experts, which is not good."
Asked what the government could do to help farmers battling agrarian crisis and deficient rainfall, Gandhi said: "We have made a slow transition from agricultural economy to knowledge and industrial economy. During the UPA regime, we got a backlash on NREGA, with many asking why were we doing this. When we were in government, we had a strategy of supporting the farmers. We were firm on giving minimum support price to farmers.
Sadly, our current government has lost its focus."
