GST controversy from flour to curd, Nirmala Sitharaman answered everything

The issue of imposition of GST on everyday items like curd, lassi, atta, and gram flour has gained momentum. Amid this atmosphere, now Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has tried to pacify every dispute by tweeting 14. Along with this, Nirmala Sitharaman released a list of items that will not attract any GST if sold in the open and will not be taken pre-packaged or pre-labeled. The Finance Minister has also mentioned the consent of non-BJP ruled states regarding GST.

What did the Finance Minister say: Nirmala Sitharaman has tweeted in a question-and-answer style – is this the first time that such food items are being taxed? No, states were collecting revenue from food grains in the pre-GST regime. Punjab alone collected over Rs 2,000 crore on food grains as purchase tax. UP collected Rs 700 crore.

Nirmala Sitharaman further says that when GST was implemented, a GST rate of 5% was applied to branded cereals, pulses, and flour. It was later amended to levy tax on only those goods which were sold under a registered brand or brands.

Nirmala Sitharaman further points out that this provision was soon witnessed on a large scale by reputed manufacturers and brand owners and gradually the GST revenue from these items declined significantly.

The fitment committee also recommended: According to Nirmala Sitharaman, it was opposed by those suppliers and industry associations who were paying tax on branded goods. He wrote to the government to levy GST uniformly on all packaged goods to prevent such misuse. Nirmala Sitharaman pointed out that the fitment committee had also examined the issue in several meetings and made its recommendations to change the modalities to prevent misuse.

Decision with everyone's consent: Nirmala Sitharaman, while releasing a list of 14 products, wrote - If these items are sold in the open and are not pre-packaged or pre-labeled, then there will be no GST on them. He said that this was a unanimous decision taken by the GST Council. Representatives of all the states were present at the meeting. Nirmala Sitharaman said that all states including non-BJP ruled Punjab, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Kerala agree with this decision.

In her last tweet, Nirmala Sitharaman said that it was an urgent decision. It was considered at various levels including officers, and the Group of Ministers, and finally implemented by the GST Council with full consent of all the members.