Govt notifies 31 GST tribunals across major states and UTs

NEW DELHI: The finance ministry has notified 31 benches of the GST Appellate Tribunal (GSTAT) which will be set up in all states and Union territories - paving the way for early resolution of over 14,000 cases of disputed tax demands.
Currently, taxpayers aggrieved with the ruling of tax authorities are required to move the respective high courts. As a result, the resolution process takes a long time as high courts are already overburdened and do not have a specialised bench to deal with GST cases.
According to data shared by the minister of state for finance Pankaj Chaudhary in the Lok Sabha last month, the number of appeals against tax demand raised by Central GST authorities has gone up to 14,227 by June-end, from 5,499 in March 2021.Setting up of state-level benches of GSTAT would help businesses by way of faster dispute resolution. In the first phase, the government has notified 31 tribunals that would be formed in all major cities of the country. According to the notification, Gujarat and UTs - Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu - will have two benches of the GSTAT; Goa and Maharashtra together will have three benches. "This move will help in bolstering ease of doing business," Chandrajit Banerjee, industry chamber CII DG, said. agencies