General Sales Tax (GST) is a much debated subject within and outside the government circles and business community in our country. The NDA Government even has brought the draft bill in the parliament in this respect but owing to opposition by the Congress and its affiliates in the parliament it could not be passed. However, it appears that the matter is being discussed at party level in both the camps and there is a likelihood of the bill coming up in the ongoing session of the Parliament. It is a contentious issue and opinions are divided.
This notwithstanding, the State Government would not want to be caught napping on this crucial issue. In view of the fact that J&K is not bound to accept all the laws passed by the Parliament owing to Article 370, even if the Parliament passes the GST Bill the State Government may or may not accept it for implementation. Therefore to be on the safer side, the Government of the State has taken a sensible step of constituting a seven-member expert committee headed by the Financial Commissioner Planning Department to consider whether application of the bill will be feasible for the State or not. Obviously, the Government will consider the report of this expert committee as the guideline for any decision on this crucial issue. The Committee has been given specific time within which it has to submit its report. It will be premature for us to comment on the feasibility or non-feasibility of implementing the bill when passed but we can safely say that the Government has done the right thing by constituting an expert committee to reflect on a technical and financial issue. Obviously, this being a non-political issue, the Committee should be able to arrive at consensus of opinion. That is what is expected from this committee by way of positive contribution in the interests of the State.
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