Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram said that there was no link between the protests by party leaders in Parliament concerning the National Herald case and its stand on the Goods & Service Tax Bill. In an interview to The Hindu published on Thursday, Chidambaram said that the link has been made by the central government and selectively placed in the media.

The former finance minister said that the impasse over the GST Bill stands where it was at the meeting called by Prime Minister Narendra Modi last month, as the government is yet to send its revised formulations to the Congress party based on the deliberations between the two sides. Chidambaram added that the Congress will examine the government's formulations "with an open mind".

Protests by Congress leaders in the Parliament have disrupted both Houses this week, leading to repeated adjournments. Chidambaram, however, defended the Opposition's tactics. He said, "What happens in Parliament on a given day depends on the dynamics of that day… I am sure there are a lot of people who sympathise with the Congress party that there is a deep suspicion that the government is motivated against the Gandhis."