BJP counters Congress’s charges on GST

BJP accuses Congress of misleading on GST, highlighting record collections and transparency, while Congress resorts to false claims.

The Bharatiya Janata Party on Thursday (January 9, 2024) accused the Congress of misleading people on the issue of Goods and Services Tax (GST).

BJP national spokesperson and former Rajya Sabha MP, Syed Zafar Islam, in a press statement, said the Congress was “rattled by the implementation and success of GST because it no longer has any loopholes, depriving Congress of opportunities for corruption”.

“As a result, Congress has been attempting to tarnish the image of GST from the start. Initially, Congress referred to GST as ‘Gabbar Singh Tax’, and now it is calling it ‘Tax Terrorism’, despite the fact that it was Congress government that first introduced the concept of GST,” he said.

The BJP leader said the GST collections had set new records, and the government had also increased the Central grants given to States. The Congress, on the other hand, was only engaged in spreading “falsehoods and misleading the public, as it has no other agenda”.

He said the Congress should note that, according to media reports, the Union government collected a total of ₹21.51 lakh crore through GST from January to December 2024. As for the financial year 2024-25, GST collections had already reached ₹16.33 lakh crore, with three months still remaining in the fiscal year.

Mr. Islam said GST compliance had been made easier and more transparent. “Additionally, it has increased the government’s revenue capacity and directly benefited the States. Moreover, the ease of tax compliance under GST has also benefited consumers,” the BJP leader said.

He said the Congress should know that all decisions in the GST Council meetings were made by consensus, with the participation of Chief Ministers and Finance Ministers from several Opposition-ruled States, including the Congress. “So far, 55 GST Council meetings have been held, and not a single decision has been made without unanimous agreement,” he added.