GST Registration to have Strict Mechanism: Minister suggests Police Verification

The Government of Gujarat  has decided to implement a passport-like mechanism in the GST registration process to combat bogus billing, the legislative assembly was informed on Wednesday. On the first day of the monsoon session, state Finance Minister Kanubhai Desai made the announcement in the House.

To combat the threat of bogus billing, we have decided to tighten and enforce the GST registration process. For those seeking a GST number, we will use a passport-style registration process (including police verification). As stated by Desai, this will eliminate the possibility of fraud through bogus billing.

The plan was shared by the minister while responding to members of the opposition Congress about the issue of unscrupulous individuals claiming tax credits by producing fake bills.

He was speaking after tabling a Bill that seeks to rationalise the rate of interest on late payments of taxes and duties.

The minister informed the House that the ‘Gujarat Taxation Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2023’ would set the maximum rate of interest and give the government the authority to specify a lower rate of interest through a notification. The Bill was approved by a majority vote in the BJP-controlled assembly.

The assembly also passed two additional bills. The Gujarat Goods and Services Tax (Amendment) Bill, as well as the Champaner-Pavagadh Archaeological Park World Heritage Area Management Authority (Repeal) Bill.

The Gujarat GST (Amendment) Bill, which proposes a 28% tax on bets in online gaming, casinos, and horse race clubs, was passed by a majority voice vote after a heated debate.

A senior Congress MLA, urged the government to withdraw the Bill, claiming that it would legalise gambling in Gujarat because, rather than punishing the accused, the government would now collect a tax from him for placing bets through online applications.

Notably, in August, Parliament passed a similar Bill to amend the Central and Integrated GST laws to levy a 28% tax on online gaming, casinos, and horse race clubs.

The third Bill proposed the abolition of a 2006 authority established in Panchmahal district to preserve heritage structures near Champaner and Pavagadh.

The assembly was informed that the authority established in 2006 is no longer relevant because the state government established the ‘Pavagadh Area Development Authority’ in June of this year for the same purpose.