NEW DELHI — Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday said that recently, the central government included GST under the purview of the Enforcement Directorate (ED), which could be misused and the innocent businessmen could be put behind the bar, even if they were paying tax on time.
Kejriwal said on Twitter that a large group of businessmen don’t pay Goods and Services Tax — some out of compulsion, some intentionally — and with the Central government move, it would worsen the situation.
“A few days ago, the central government also included GST in ED. This means that if a trader does not pay GST, the ED will arrest him directly and bail will not be granted,” he alleged.
The GST system is so complex that even those who are paying full GST can be caught in some provision and put in jail. It means, the central government can send any businessperson to jail whenever it wants,” his tweet read.
Kejriwal further stated that it was extremely dangerous as instead of conducting business, traders would be focused on protecting themselves from the ED. He said even small-scale traders in the country will fall into this trap and no trader will be spared.
“This is very dangerous for the country’s economy. Today there is a meeting of the GST Council. I hope that everyone will speak out against this move, and the central government should withdraw it immediately,” he tweeted.
The Centre has brought the GST Network (GSTN) under the purview of Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) to plug tax evasion through fake billing.Â
This will give more power to the ED, and allow the ED to share information with the GSTN. — IANS
