SC: GST council's recommendations not binding on Centre, state governments

New Delhi, May 19 (IANS) The Supreme Court on Thursday ruled that GST council's recommendations are not binding on the Centre and state governments.A bench headed by Justice D.Y Chandrachud said GST Council recommendations only have a persuasive value as India is a cooperative federalism, and the Centre and states have simultaneous powers to legislate on Goods and Service Tax (GST). The bench emphasised that the GST council must work in a harmonious manner to achieve a workable solution between Centre and state governments.The top court said state governments and Centre can equally legislate on matters of GST, and all recommendations of the GST council are not binding on state legislature, but only have persuasive value.The top court said according to Article 246A, both Parliament and state legislature have equal power to legislate on matters of taxation. It added that Article 279 says state and Centre cannot act independent of each other and also points towards competitive federalism. The top court's judgment in the matter will be uploaded later in the day.
--IANS ss/shb/

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