Chandigarh, June 2

Finance Minister Manpreet Badal has reiterated his demand for not allowing the GST Implementation Committee (GIC) to take the decisions on behalf of the GST Council.

In a letter to Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Manpreet said he was not “fault finding” by raising the issue, rather was trying to enhance the GST Council’s ability to collectively make decisions, backed by consensus and unsusceptible to any future legal challenges.

The letter has reportedly been written by Manpreet after the concerns on the issue raised by Punjab were reportedly not received well in the GST Council meeting held last week. Asking the Union Finance Minister to examine the issue seriously, he said the recommendations of the GIC do not amount to recommendations of the GST Council. “Their recommendations can only be advisories and not legally binding. All rules made on the basis of the recommendations are subject to judicial review,” he said. — TNS