JOIN USSetting the stage for making the GST Bill a reality, the government on Tuesday circulated three key amendments carried out in the 2014 version of the proposed legislation.
The amendments included dropping of 1% additional tax and giving a legal backing to compensations that states would get for their revenue loss up to five years.
The other amendment proposed in the 2014 bill was that the adjudication of dispute, if any, between the states would be dealt with by a mechanism proposed by the GST Council.
The 2014 bill authorised the GST Council to decide upon the modalities for resolution of disputes.
These constitute the major demands of the Opposition Congress, which along with other parties, has agreed to support the bill in the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday.
The CPM, however, has kept its cards close to its chest saying it will reveal the strategy once the bill is tabled in the House. The bill has been languishing in the House for the past one year for want of numbers by the ruling NDA. The Lok Sabha had passed the bill in May 2015.
Other changes introduced by the 2016 amendment were–the states’ share of Integrated GST (IGST) would not form part of the Consolidated Fund of India; and the term IGST would be replaced with ‘goods and services tax levied on supplies in the course of inter-state trade or commerce’.
CPM’s Sitaram Yechury objected to the amendment and sought to know where the fund would be kept, if not in consolidated fund.
The amendments also made it clear that Central GST (CGST) and the Centre’s share of IGST would be distributed between the Centre and the states. The amendments, however, did not mention anything about one major demand of the Congress–putting the GST rate cap in the Constitution. The cap may be included in the supporting legislation and will come up after the constitutional amendment is passed.
It is these amendments that the Rajya Sabha will discuss on Wednesday. The time allotted for discussions is five-and-a-half hours. Once these amendments are passed in the Upper House, the revised bill will be sent back to the Lower House. Next, the state governments, at least half of them, will have to ratify the bill in their Assemblies. The Constitution (122nd Amendment) Bill, 2014, once passed by both Houses and assented to by the President of India, will become the Constitution (101st Amendment) Act, 2016.
Bill’s history
Constitution (122nd Amendment) Bill, 2014, introduced in Lok Sabha on Dec 19, 2014
Passed by Lok Sabha on May 6, 2015, and referred to a select committee of
Rajya Sabha
Select panel submitted its report on July 22, 2015
Certain official amendments to the 2014 Bill were circulated on Aug 1, 2016