The GST is at a crossroads, it needs a political fix, not a legal one

Without doubt, negotiation on GST compensation will be contentious. Time for Centre and states to show true leadership and salvage it

Acrimony between the Centre and states has brought the Goods and Services Tax (GST) to a crossroads. Down one path lies the breakdown of the GST, the re-balkanization of India into segmented markets, and a damaging rupture in Centre-state cooperation, fiscal and beyond. Down the other path lies the rehabilitation of the GST so that it can deliver on its initial promise. The preferred choice is clear, almost obvious. The dispiriting news is that it requires good faith on both sides, which seems to be in short supply.  

The starting point is the obvious one. Covid-19 is a historically unprecedented