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The Congress on Saturday (August 16, 2025) demanded an official discussion paper on GST 2.0 soon for a wider debate on it and said the reform should be towards a "Good and Simple Tax" in letter, spirit, and compliance, and not the "Growth Suppressing Tax" it has become.
Congress demands release of discussion paper on GST 2.0
A day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in his Independence Day speech, said that the Union government would rationalise the Goods and Services Tax regime, the Opposition Congress party has demanded an official discussion paper on “GST 2.0” for a wider debate on it. Party general secretary (communications) Jairam Ramesh said in a statement in New Delhi on Saturday (August 16, 2025) that the reform should be towards a “Good and Simple Tax” and not for suppression of growth.
Independence Day highlights
Mr. Ramesh said the Congress has been calling for a radically transformed GST 2.0. “This was a key pledge in its manifesto for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections,” he said adding that Mr. Modi seems to have finally woken up to the fact that economic growth will simply not accelerate unless this transformation takes place and increases private consumption and private investment.
“The Indian National Congress demands an official discussion paper on GST 2.0 very soon so that there can be an informed and wider debate on this vital and pressing national issue. GST 2.0 should be truly a Good and Simple Tax (GST) in letter, spirit, and compliance – not like the Growth Suppressing Tax (GST) it has become,” Mr. Ramesh said.
He said the spirit of GST has been vitiated by an increased number of rates and the granting of multiple exemptions over the last seven years. “The structure also seems to have facilitated evasion. There must be a drastic reduction in the number of rates. Simplification of the rate structure is essential, but must be done in a manner that minimises revenue uncertainty to States and also eliminates the classification disputes that have become so common. The GST compensation cess expires on March 31, 2026. This must be extended to offset any revenue uncertainty from the rationalization of the rate structure,” he said.
Mr. Ramesh said the widespread concerns of Micro Small and Medium Establishments must be addressed meaningfully and demanded that States should be incentivised to move towards the introduction of State-level GST to cover electricity, alcohol, petroleum, and real estate.
All India Professionals' Congress chairman Praveen Chakravarty alleged that the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) has asked industrialists to praise Mr. Modi for admitting that GST was a disaster. In social media, Mr. Chakravarty said the CII provided its members with tweet drafts for industrialists to post, with clear instructions.GST, which subsumed a host of taxes and local levies, was rolled out on July 1, 2017.
Published - August 16, 2025 11:38 am IST
Indian National Congress / economy, business and finance
Source: The Hindu
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