States have been asking the center to pay off goods and services tax (GST)
Chandigarh:
Haryana’s Chief Deputy Minister Dushyant Chautala has asked the center to pay the state goods and services compensation (GST) of at least Rs 5,840 crore that has been pending for the past four months, according to a statement on Friday.
While participating in the 41st GST Council meeting on Thursday via videoconference, the Senior Deputy Minister asked the center to provide maximum financial support to Haryana, as the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the state’s economy.
He said the loss of revenue should be compensated to the states even after the five-year GST period, in 2022.
Chautala said that Haryana is a leading state in manufacturing and exports. He added before the GST regime, “the state used to get the maximum revenue in the form of taxes on products.” Revenue collection across the state has suffered after the implementation of the GST system, he said.
The states where the products are sold are reaping more benefits from GST, the chief deputy minister added. State revenue has also been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, he said during the meeting.
Mr. Chautala drew the attention of the GST Council to the provisions of the constitutional amendments in which the parliament is entrusted with the responsibility of ensuring the payment of compensation to the states.
“Parliament should come forward on this matter,” he said. He also stressed that the council should focus on increasing revenue as a long-term solution to the revenue shortfall problem.
Dushyant Chautala, leader of the Jannayak Janta Party, also called on the GST Council to hold a council meeting in which the participants are present, “so that the representatives of all the states can present their views in a better and effective way. “.
While Haryana has a BJP-JJP coalition government, amidst a chorus of non-NDA-governed states to make up for the GST revenue shortfall, the center told states on Thursday that the estimated deficit of Rs 2.35 lakh crore this financial year can be saved by borrowing.
The center made a distinction between the loss of income due to the implementation of the GST and the economic slowdown stemming from the COVID-19 crisis. The government said its legal obligation is only to compensate states for losses stemming from the GST deployment.
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