‘HAPPY WITH THE DECISION TO LOOK INTO GST ISSUES’

NEW DELHI: The horse racing industry has welcomed the GST Council’s decision to allow a group of ministers (GoM) to re-examine the issues related to levying GST on the value of bets.

“We are happy to note that GST council has deferred its decision on imposing GST on the value of bets placed @28%. We look forward to the GoM considering how horse racing is different from other gaming,” said Zavaray S Poonawalla, chairman GST reform cell of The Turf Authorities of India (TAI), an association of six race clubs in India.

“This gives us a window of 15 days to present to the GoM that unlike gaming for commercial gain, which is undertaken by other service providers, all race clubs in India are setup as notfor-profit clubs. The licensed Horse Race clubs have been in existence for over 200 years in India and in the span of their operations of over two centuries, the tax imposed on betting has been on the commission made by the racecourses and not on the value of bets. The proposed GST would be against this centuries old norm, international norms and even the state’s betting and entertainment tax, which the GST regime subsumed,” he said.

Poonawalla said that all over the world, “payouts/prize money on horse racing is not taxed.”

“This should definitely be applicable to the horse racing industry in India too,” he added.

TAI said the clubs which are all non-profit, support the jockeys, the horses, equestrian breeding and training, besides providing employment to thousands across India.

It said unlike commercial gaming, all revenue made by the clubs is completely ploughed back into these welfare measures. “The GoM needs to be cognizant of the fact that horse racing and equestrian breeding will suffer an irreversible damage, if the proposed GST on value of bets is imposed,” said the statement by TAI. “The sport generates lakhs of jobs in the agriculture sector, pharma industry, and labour industry etc.”