Maharashtra accounts for 19 pc of states’ GST revenue
By CL Jose
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM/September 02-2022: Kerala’s GST revenue for the just-concluded month of August witnessed a smart growth of 26 per cent to Rs2036 crore compared with Rs1612 crore the state earned for the same period last year.
Growth in Kerala’s GST revenue in the said month was much ahead of the 19 per cent growth registered by aggregate GST revenue earned by all states.
The combined GST revenue of the states grew from Rs84,490 crore in August, FY22 to Rs100,526 crore in August FY23
According to tax experts, a big chunk of Kerala’s GST revenue may have come from the state’s share of Integrated Goods and Services Tax (IGST), which are taxes levied on ‘interstate’ purchase or supplies of taxable services & goods and import of services & goods.
GST being a destination-based tax, Kerala obviously stands to gain a higher share from IGST than from the intrastate transactions (within the state).
There are reports that a big volume of goods still enters the state dodging the GST net. Talking to businessbenchmark.news, a trader based in Thrissur said he is getting around 60 per cent of goods from outside Kerala, unbilled and untaxed.
Arresting the erosion of state’s GST share on this count is a big challenge facing the Finance Department as the avenues of resources available for states have become very limited.
While Goa registered the biggest growth in GST revenue during August, 2022 at 32 per cent, followed by Karnataka at 29 per cent, compared with the same period last year, the recipient of largest volume of GST revenue for the said period was Maharashtra, by far, with a kitty of Rs18,863 crore as against Rs15,175 crore a year earlier.
Needed GST Appellate Tribunal
The traders are at loss when it comes to seeking recourse to disputes in the GST regime.
Though the GST Department has adjudication platforms where the aggrieved can approach, the absence of a GST appellate tribunal denies them the real comfort in seeking justice, according to traders dealing with such issues.
Talking to bbn, Joy Chettupuzha of Chettupuzhakaran Legal Services (CLS), GST consultants based in Thrissur, echoed the same view and stated that quite often his clients are not happy with the outcome of the Department adjudications because they fear if they can get justice from them as the fight itself is, in a way, against the department.
“Most disputes reach High Court as the parties smell bias in the rulings given out by the adjudicators as the members are essentially from the department. And due to this, most cases ultimately land up in High Court as there is no Appellate tribunal to take up these issues ‘equitably and judiciously’,” Joy noted.
