P Chidambaram: GST is a mockery in the name of tax reform
- P Chidambaram says that the central government’s GST is an incomplete scheme
- He denies the claim that GST is a ‘one nation, one tax’ scheme
- Congress will carry out of awareness programs throughout the country in order to bring awareness among the people about the GST that they intended to bring
FollowGST is implemented to remove tax barriers between states. It is being reported by the traders and the businessmen that the GST rates are high and hence many are staging protest against this.
With regards to this, senior Congress leader P Chidambaram said, “This is not the GST that we proposed. Congress was very particular that the GST should not increase more than 18%. We suggested that the aspects such as petrol, electricity and the real estate should be brought under GST.”
“This central government’s GST is an incomplete scheme. This GST, that includes 7 types of rate, is a mockery in the name of GST. We have rates such as 0.25, 3, 5, 12, 18, 28 and 40. These rates when added along with the district wise rates, it would get further increased. Then how can we call this a ‘one nation, one tax’ regime?"
He further said, “The officials were not completely prepared for this launch. The businessmen were also not prepared for this. The implementation should have been postponed for two months and an experiment should have been carried out. We will soon carry out meetings and awareness programs throughout the country in order to explain people about the GST that we intended to bring.”
