GST, farm Bills and 4 other events that widened Centre-state trust deficit

The roots of the trust deficit lie in the unwillingness of the political authorities to invest in cooperative federalism since their priority is to secure and wield power at the central level

The Centre’s inability to compensate the states for the loss of goods and services tax (GST) revenue, as mutually agreed, has raised questions about a trust deficit between the two levels of government. A trust deficit widens when national parties are in sole power at the Centre, as these parties see ruling from Delhi as their overarching political goal. This was the case under prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, and Rajiv Gandhi. 

With coalition governments, the situation is a bit better. Since India has seen continuous coalitions since 1989, negotiations between the Centre and states required political investment in