Kerala’s Finance Minister, Thomas Isaac, has countered the two options offered by the central government on GST compensation, with two of his own.
Isaac reiterated in an interview to BloombergQuint that, as per the constitutional amendment, the centre should be the one to borrow and compensate the states for the shortfall in the goods and services tax revenue. Currently, both options proffered by the centre involve the states borrowing to meet the shortfall. If it’s unwilling to do that then it must discuss and negotiate with the states to find an acceptable resolution, said Isaac.
“You cannot unilaterally decide this, you have to negotiate. The central government is unwilling to negotiate on this. They are saying either you choose one or you go to two. That’s not fair.”
Under option 1, the centre has proposed the states borrow Rs 1.1 lakh crore this financial year, with central…