Kolkata/New Delhi: Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Tuesday said virtually all states, barring Tamil Nadu, have come on board on the long-pending Goods and Services Tax Bill and expressed hopes of pushing the legislation in the upcoming monsoon session.
After a meeting of Empowered Committee of State Finance Ministers here on the proposed nationwide common indirect tax, Jaitley also said the states’ fear of any revenue loss in the first five years has been addressed and the Centre would compensate for these losses.
“Virtually all the states have supported the idea of GST today, barring Tamil Nadu which has expressed some reservations. Tamil Nadu has offered a few suggestions which have been noted by the committee,” Jaitley told reporters on the first day of the two-day meet.
At their meeting, the state finance ministers also approved a model GST law, which said that sale of goods and services and all online purchases will attract GST at the first point of transaction and pegged threshold annual turnover for levy of the tax at Rs 10 lakh. The limit will be Rs 5 lakh in North East and Sikkim.
Jaitley said there is “no deadline as such” for the implementation of the Goods and Services Tax which aims to subsume a string of state and central level levies.
The government had earlier targeted to roll out the nationwide single tax regime from April 1, 2016 but the Constitutional Amendment Bill on GST has been stuck in the Rajya Sabha due to opposition by the Congress party.
Jaitley, however, rejected Congress’ demand for capping the GST rate, which has been the main issue of contention.
“There is a complete consensus on that, there should not be any such ceiling as exigencies may arise in future. Now it is left to the GST council,” he said. Congress Leader Ghulam Nabi Azad, who is also Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha, however said in the national capital that there is no change in Congress’ stand as of now.
“If government satisfies the Congress and other parties which have sought amendments, then there is no problem. To speak about it now is premature as the Monsoon session is one and a half months away”, he said. (PTI)
