GOLDEN TEMPLE PRIESTS UNHAPPY WITH GST
The high priests of Amritsar’s Golden Temple are upset. The Goods and Services Tax (GST) has started hitting the sentiments of the religious bodies, including the Golden Temple and many other gurudwaras across the country. First, langar (free kitchen) purchases came under the GST. Now, the siropa cloth has come under the GST cover. The presentation of siropa (robe of honour) is a religious tradition to honour someone. Top Sikh organisations have urged Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley to exempt the siropa cloth from GST. Every year, the Sikh Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC), the supreme Sikh body, purchases about 20 lakh metres of saffron-colour “Rubia” cloth for preparing siropas, costing over Rs 50 lakh, for the Golden Temple and the Akal Takht. This cloth cost about Rs 30 per metre in bulk purchases. “There is now 5% tax on the cloth,” the SGPC’s chief secretary Harcharan Singh told The Sunday Guardian. “Earlier,” he said, “it was tax-free.” SGPC chief Kirpal Singh Badungar has decided to reduce the budget for siropas. “We will now be quite selective in choosing personalities to be honoured,” says Badungar. Meanwhile, the SGPC has approached Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh to waive the state component of GST on langar purchases. Before the GST coming into force, the Golden Temple, Takht Sri Kesgarh Sahib, Takht Sri Anandpur Sahib and Takht Sri Damdama Sahib were exempted from paying VAT. Now, 12% tax is levied on desi ghee, 18% on sugar and 5% on pulses. “Our annual financial burden is going to shoot up by Rs 10 crore,” points out Badungar. In all gurudwaras, free food is served to devotees, without taking into consideration their caste, creed or race.