Sushil Modi rules out bringing petrol, diesel under GST
New Delhi, June 29: GST Council Member and Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Modi on Friday outright ruled out bringing petroleum products under the ambit of Goods and Services Tax (GST) in near future, citing loss of revenue both to central and state governments.
He added there was no consensus in the GST Council on the issue yet and if such a decision was effected in a hurry, both the Central and the state governments would incur huge revenue losses.
Modi, the Bihar Finance Minister, added that even if petroleum products are brought under GST, there is no guarantee that they would attract a tax rate within 28 per cent and states may levy additional taxes for want of more revenue.
His statement comes days after NITI Aayog Vice Chairman Rajiv Kumar told IANS in an interview that petrol and diesel can't be brought under GST any time soon since the total state and Central taxes on petrol put together are around 90 per cent right now.
He had said that no state will be willing to take a cut so huge and opening a new slab under GST would be an enormous exercise.
However, Modi said the Council could positively consider bringing in natural gas and aviation turbine fuel within the purview of GST.
Addressing a National Conclave on "GST - Growing Stronger Together" here, he said the GST slab of 28 per cent for certain products could be brought down only once the revenues stabilize at about Rs one lakh crore per month, a statement said.
The average monthly collection under GST stood at Rs 89,885 crore during 2017-18.
"Similarly, a three slab GST could also be possible at any rate between 12 per cent and 18 per cent once the monthly revenue collections move towards stability which will take time," he added.
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K’taka HC judge whose controversial remarks triggered controversy expresses regret before open court
Bengaluru: Karnataka High Court judge, Justice V Srishananda, on Saturday expressed regret in open court after facing backlash over his controversial remarks in his recent court hearings, reported Bar and Bench.
Two purported video clips from Justice V Srishananda’s court hearing that show him making inappropriate comments went viral across social media platforms.
On Saturday, Justice Srishananda invited members of the Advocates Association, Bengaluru, and senior lawyers to his courtroom at 2:30 PM, where he read out a note expressing regret for inappropriate comments.
Quoting Advocates Association President Vivek Subba Reddy, Bar and Bench wrote, “He expressed regret for the comments and clarified that it was not his intention to offend any community or members of the Bar. He also requested the association to relay this message to all members of the Bar.”
Reddy further stated, “We also advised him to encourage young lawyers in the courtroom and refrain from making any irrelevant remarks during hearings.”
Another senior lawyer present during the session confirmed to the legal news portal that Justice Srishananda also addressed comments directed at a woman lawyer, who was seen in one of the videos being reprimanded by the judge. The judge Justice Srishananda clarified that his remarks were not intended to target her (woman lawyer) specifically, but rather pertained to the appellant she was representing. “He explained that his comment was meant to imply that the appellant seemed to know a lot about the other party,” said the lawyer.
In addition, Justice Srishananda assured those present that he would avoid making such comments in the future.
The controversy came to light on September 19, when a video clip from an August 28 Court hearing surfaced on social media, showing Justice Srishananda referring to a Muslim-majority sub-locality in Bengaluru’s Goripalya as "Pakistan." Hours later, another video from the same courtroom emerged, in which the judge was seen making a gender-insensitive remark.
Following outrage over the viral videos, a Supreme Court bench led by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, along with Justices Sanjiv Khanna, BR Gavai, Surya Kant, and Hrishikesh Roy, on September 20 took a suo motu cognizance and sought a report from the Karnataka High Court Registrar General in connection with the viral video.
