The Tamil Nadu Chamber of Commerce and Industry has appealed to the Union government to constitute a high-level committee, comprising Central and State Ministers, officials and representatives of trade and industry, to discuss and formulate an authentic Goods and Services Tax rate schedule.
In a statement issued here on Monday, its senior president S. Rethinavelu and president N. Jegatheesan expressed shock over the advertisements released jointly by the Central Board of Excise and Customs and Commercial Taxes departments of States in question-answer format that state that roasted gram attracts 12% GST. However the disclaimer in these advertisements say that the replies given for the queries are only for educational and guidance purpose and do not hold any legal validity.
The chamber claimed that several legal experts were of the view that the clarification on rate of tax for roasted gram was imprecise as it attracted only 5% GST. This kind of clarifications given in advertisements without any legal sanctity would create unnecessary confusion and force dealers to approach courts, which was contrary to the principle of GST, the chamber said and added that it would only generate opposition among public and business community to GST, which is per se “transparent, simple and proactive.”
The statement said that if the government itself was unable to give confirmation on the rate of tax, it would seriously impact business in the country. Hence it was imperative that a high-level committee was formed to formulate an authentic GST rate schedule as clarity was very critical at this juncture.
