No consensus on dual control, next meeting on Jan 3

The GST Council on Thursday moved a significant step closer to finalising the draft Central GST and State GST laws that must be passed in Parliament, while it again failed to reach out at consensus on contentious dual control or cross empowerment issue in the new regime.

NEW DELHI: The GST Council on Thursday moved a significant step closer to finalising the draft Central GST and State GST laws that must be passed in Parliament, while it again failed to reach out at consensus on contentious dual control or cross empowerment issue in the new regime.


The Council will meet again on January 3-4 and will discuss the contentious issue of cross-empowerment, the only main issue that is lacking consensus, said Finance Minister Arun Jaitley adding that the next session will also see the CGST and SGST laws being framed in legal language and placed before the states. The meeting will also take up integrated GST (IGST) Bill. 


“So, if I were to list the residual issues left for the next meeting, then they are the Interstate GST law, the issues of dual control and cross empowerment, and the approval of the legally vetted language,” Jaitley said., adding, “The CGST and SGST laws, a total of 197 provisions and five schedules, have been approved.” 


The panel, which met for the seventh time since the Constitutional Amendment to institute a Goods and Service Tax was approved in mid-September, tweaked the periodicity of payment of compensation for loss of revenue to states for implementation of GST to bi-monthly instead of previously decided quarterly payment.


Also, the Council decided to create the kitty for the compensation ‘from any other tax’ besides the cess on luxury and sin goods it had previously approved, as states saw revenues being dented by slowdown in economic activity and resultant tax collections following demonetisation. 


When asked whether the GST could be rolled out from April one, 2017, Jaitley said, “I am trying my best. Our effort is to do it as quickly as possible and I think we are making a reasonable headway.”

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