Backed by the prime minister, Jaitley relentlessly worked the phone lines and his vast network on both sides of the aisles in the upper House. In the case of finance minister Arun Jaitley, it is the goods and services tax (GST)—India’s most important piece of tax reform, which will for the first time economically unify the country. Undoubtedly there will be many claimants to this singular piece of tax reform; only natural, given its game changing nature. It found mention for the first time when the then finance minister, P. Chidambaram, proposed the idea in his 2006-07 budget speech. Backed by the Prime Minister, Jaitley relentlessly worked the phone lines and his vast network on both sides of the aisles in the upper House.

Source: Mint October 23, 2016 18:00 UTC