Centre waives off GST on langar, SGPC welcomes move

The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) on Friday welcomed union government’s move of giving reimbursement of GST (Goods and Service Tax) on purchase of Langar items and appreciated the efforts made by the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) to persuade the union government for same.

The SGPC president Gobind Singh Longowal said they gurdwara body and the SAD had made persistent efforts to ensure GST waiver. “The waiver is result of these efforts”, he said while thanking Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Appreciating the Badal family for making the contribution, he offered special thanks to former Punjab CM and SAD patron Parkash Singh Badal, president Sukhbir Singh Badal and union minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal for taking up the issue with authorities concerned in the union government.

The centre has issued a direction after getting sanction from the president of India of the Special Financial Assistance for Sewa Bhoj Yojana on Thursday. Under the scheme, CGST (Central Goods and Services Tax) and centre’s share of IGST (Integrated Goods and Services Tax) paid on purchase of specific items by charitable religious institutions for distributing free food to public shall be re-imbursed as financial assistance by the government of India.

In a press release issued here to hail the centre’s decision, Longowal said the waiver will make the gurdwara body and other religious body free from financial burden and the amount which was paid as GST will be able to be spent on social welfare.

Pertinently, the Punjab government has already waived off its share of GST on the purchase of langar items.

The SGPC spokesperson Diljit Singh Bedi said approximately Rs. 3.2 crore have been paid as GST on purchase of items so far for Golden Temple langar, largest community kitchen in the world. “The move is praiseworthy but now the government should also decide to return the amount it has charged on purchase of langar item so far”, he added.

MP Aujla questions SAD over credit for centre’s move

Welcoming the decision of providing special financial assistance to all religious bodies, Member of Parliament for Amritsar Gurjeet Singh Aujla said that though it shall not be a healthy practice to do politics on such a matter but still there are some who want to get some political mileage.

Aujla who kept on demonstrating in parliament against GST on langar by wearing a banner, ridiculed that “our Minister of State Harsimrat Kaur Badal has copied her father-in-law’s modus operandi very well by announcing to resign from her post when she came to know that center’s policy in this regard is about to be announced”.

Aujla asked Harsimrat to explain to the sangat that why didn’t she announce to resign in July 2017 when the union imposed the tax on langar and or why she didn’t announce to resign when Capt. “CM Capt Amarinder Singh cancelled SGST on langar and the union was playing hide and seek over this matter”, he added.