Mumbai: A public interest litigation (PIL) came up before the Bombay High Court on Tuesday asking it to defer the implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Act till the next financial year. The matter will be heard on June 29.
The PIL, filed by retired professor Dr. Kanagasabapathy Sundaram Pillai, was mentioned before a Division Bench of Justice V.K. Tahilramani and Justice S.S. Shinde. Dr. Pillai is an assistant professor at KEM Hospital in Parel, provides free medical and social services, and runs an NGO.
The PIL seeks to defer the implementation of GST till April 1, 2018, onwards after budget sanction by Parliament. It says this will give the government adequate time to create public awareness. People will be able to adopt the major tax reform without facing difficulties like scarcity of essentials like medicines, drinking water and food.
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The PIL asks if it is not the duty of the government to follow constitutional norms in bringing about major changes in the Constitution under Article 368. Dr. Pillai has urged the government to defer the implementation till it takes legal sanction for the tax rates from Parliament in the 2018 Budget session.
He also wants awareness on all procedures so that traders are familiar with the necessary software.