High Court says GST on Mango pulp is 12%, not 18%!

Lately, the High Court of Gujarat has given a decision on Goods and Service Tax or GST on mango pulp which has helped to relieve this confusion to a certain extent. The High Court dismissed the previous opinion that had been imposed by the lower court where it set the GST charges for mango pulp to 18 percent while the actual figure should be 12 percent. This is quite a pro as mango pulp is used in a lot of food and beverages; while the new tax proposals given to the manufacturers and those who purchase will be at least a little less stressed. Therefore, the High Court found the regulation and classifications with adequate substantiation for denying mango pulp its designation as a processed food, and instead categorizing it as a fruit product.

A Gujarat HC bench has recently passed an order in the case of Vimal Agro Products Private Limited and others regarding the confusion existing about the tax structure of Mango pulp under GST.

Regarding the facts of the case, the fresh mangoes were exempted under the GST notice with effect from July 1, 2017, whereas the dried mangoes were prescribed under a tax rate of 12% comprised of 6% CGST and 6% SGST. In the 22nd GST Council meeting headed by the Union Finance Minister on October 6, 2017, it was rightly decided to cut down the tax slabs of sliced and dried mangoes from 12% to 5%.

In its 47th meeting, the GST Council has made it clear that there exists a third type of mangoes other than fresh and dried mangoes, and that they have always formulated that such a mango would be subject to a tax rate of 12%. At the same time, the Joint Commissioner of GST claimed that the mango pulp could not be categorized and as such, 18% GST had to be imposed on it. Hence, the petitioner filed a petition in the HC seeking to quash the said notice. After hearing out all the parties the HC was precise that GST of 12% would be invoked on mango pulp.