GST Burden: Traders body calls for Bharat Bandh on February 26

New Delhi, Feb 09: The Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) has called for a Bharat Trade Bandh on 26th February against the Goods and Services Tax (GST), terming it one of the most complex taxation system.

"The GST seriously lacks product innovations owing to the complicated tax structure. There is no consultative mechanism with the traders pertaining to GST law and rules both at centre and the state governments level, which is much against the declared policy of prime minister Narendra Modi for taking stakeholders into confidence while framing a policy or the rules and 'minimum government-maximum governance'," the CAIT said in a press release.

The traders bdody unanimous view that Central and state governments have failed to respond to the miseries related to GST of the trading community of the country.

"The GST council has not only pampered various anomalies and distortions in 'one nation-one tax' principle of GST but has not taken any step to simplify the GST taxation system. The only aim of the GST Council so far is how to get more revenue and how to load the traders with more compliance burden without considering the ground realties of trade in India," it says.

"Repeated statements of CAIT were never responded by the GST Council, which has generated a feeling among the traders across the country that the council has its own agenda and it is not interested in obtaining cooperation of traders. We highly regret such dismal picture of GST and which has compelled the trade leaders attending the Conference to call for a Bharat Trade Bandh."