Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday promised changes in the goods and service tax (GST) and a new financial plan for the benefit of small and medium businesses.

During his Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra in Jharkhand’s Gumla district, the Wayanad MP said: “We will bring changes in the GST and draw up a new financial plan for the benefit of small and medium businesses if we (read INDIA bloc) come to power. These sectors have been the worst hit from the GST.”

During a visit to a chocolate-making factory in Ooty last year, Rahul had said if voted to power, his party would revisit the GST and shared on social media handles that there would be one tax slab and not five (slabs). He had also suggested setting up industrial hubs to assist small businesses and alleged that the modern GST regime was in favour of big industrial groups.

He said the revival of small and medium businesses would open employment opportunities for weaker sections and tribals.

The Congress leader rejected claims of differences among the constituents of the INDIA bloc and claimed that Trinamul Congress leader and Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee was part of the alliance.

“Mamata Banerjee is very much part of the INDIA alliance and most other members of the bloc are still in the grouping. Nitish Kumar has left the alliance and he’s gone to the BJP. You can guess the reasons for his exit. That’s fine. We’ll fight in Bihar as the INDIA alliance. So, I don’t agree that lots of our partners are not part of the alliance,” said Rahul.

He added that the alliance constituents were carrying forward their negotiations for seat sharing.

The Congress leader took a dig at the BJP and wondered “why were they obsessed with dogs".

"What harm have dogs done to the BJP?” Rahul said when a reporter asked him about a video shared on social media by BJP leader Amit Malviya. During Rahul’s Jharkhand leg of the Yatra, the video shows, Rahul handing over a biscuit to a dog's owner when the animal refused to eat it.