The finance ministry's proposal to seek compensation by way of cess on income and corporate taxes for any duty reduction on crude oil and motor fuels has put the ball squarely in the court of UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi and PM Manmohan Singh. With finance minister P Chidambaram's meeting with oil minister Murli Deora ending in a deadlock on Tuesday, the top political leadership will now have to decide how to save the state-owned oil marketing companies from bankruptcy while cushioning consumers against a fresh burden in an electorally crucial season.