‘Bring petroleum items under GST’

NEW DELHI: The Congress on Wednesday called for the inclusion of petroleum products and real estate under the ambit of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) and said it would raise the demand during Thursday’s GST council meeting.

Party spokesperson and Punjab finance minister Manpreet Singh Badal said the party will also demand that drastic changes in the new tax regime’s tariff be withheld till certain stakeholders were consulted.

At Thursday’s meeting, he claimed that the government would change the GST law, which requires Constitutional amendments.

“The kind of changes which have been brought in the last six months, it actually exceeds the total volume of GST law which was rolled out in July,” he said.

Badal accused the Bjp-led NDA government of “profiteering at the expense” of the common man. “Petrol and diesel prices are skyrocketing. The Modi government is profiteering at the expense of the common man. To provide relief to consumers, petroleum prices should be brought under the GST,” he said.

“The prices have reached a record level. Never in the last 70 years has diesel been sold at ₹61 per litre, it should be brought down. Entire economy is dieselised,” Badal added.

Congress president Rahul Gandhi had made a similar demand on October 6 last year when in a series of tweets he urged the government to bring petroleum products under the GST regime to prevent excessive profiteering from the common man. He also wrote that Prime Minister Narendra Modi should not view the new tax reform as a means to furtherhis electoral interests.