AP Chambers urges GST Council to refrain from imposing new slab rates

Representational image Photo credit: BL Net Mail

The Andhra Pradesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry Federation (AP Chambers) has written to GST Council Chairperson Nirmala Sitharaman requesting her not to implement the new GST slab rates. Increased rates could adversely affect business, the chamber said in the letter.

AP Chambers President Potluri Bhaskar Rao on Tuesday, December 17, said it was worrying to see recent media reports suggesting the committee recommending a new slab of 35% attracting rate for some products. This goes against the simplification and rate rationalization of GST. This not only leads to high theft and litigation but also encourages the development of a parallel economy that encourages illegal markets and smuggled goods. Higher taxes also reduce consumer demand, especially in times of economic stress as livelihoods suffer, he said.

The proposed 35% GST slab, if implemented, could significantly impact various sectors and stakeholders in India, he said. “India already has one of the most aggressive GST tax structures in the world with 28% as the highest bracket.” Any proposal to introduce new slabs and increase rates will be counter-productive, encourage evasion and non-compliance, encourage illegal and anti-social activities and contribute to the expansion of the formal economy and to virtue. It will reverse the ecosystem transparency that the government has painstakingly adopted. A cycle of growth, he added.