Commercial establishments cashed in on GST day before implementation

Hyderabad: Although the Goods and Service Tax was supposed to be operational from July 1, several commercial establishments in the city introduced it a day earlier.

Prasad I-Max introduced GST on June 30. Professor M. Murthy of Dr BRK Medical College said that he booked tickets online for a movie on June 30 and was surprised to find that the ticket included the new tax.

“On a ticket of Rs 200, it said the net amount was Rs 160.84, Central GST Rs 32.16 and State GST Rs 7.

“When we asked how the management collects GST before its implementation, the staff said the tax had come into existence,” he said.

Following a series of complaints by members of the public, I-Max management traced the mistake to the GST software.

The official spokesperson for Prasad I-Max said the additional tax would be refunded through the auto-refund option available with payment gateways in case of online bookings.

Customers who booked tickets offline could approach counter 10 for refunds.

“It was a mistake and we are rectifying it. We have been refunding online users and the money will be deposited in their banks or credit card accounts which were chosen by them at the time of payment,” he said.

Mr G. Durga Prasad, a cloth merchant from Himayatnagar, said a prominent restaurant ahd charged him GST on June 30. “When we questioned the management, they immediately took back the bill and rectified it,” he said.

A similar incident occurred at another prominent restaurant on Shivam Road on June 30.

Small traders offer GST-free bills if paying in cash
The introduction of GST seems to have had no impact on wholesale traders and jewellery merchants in the city. Small and medium jewellers are offering not to charge GST if customers pay in cash. Traders and merchants at wholesale markets in Begum Bazaar, Osmangunj, Mahbub Mansion etc are offering retailers GST-free bills if they make cash payments, but demand 2 per cent extra, apart from GST, in case of card payments.Mr Kailash Agarwal, a retailer from Amberpet, said that most wholesalers were offering credit if payment was made in cash and not digitally. “If we don’t have cash, they are asking us to pay cash within a period of one or two weeks cash. There is no change in the do number dhanda after GST. Retailers are also adopting the same method,” he said.

Mr G.S. Reddy, a resident of Ramanthapur, said that GST was confusing the consumer. “We don’t have tax on unpacked brooms, but we have to pay GST if it is packed with just a polythene cover. No GST on vegetables, but if it is in a package, we pay tax,” he said.

In retail shops, merchants are demanding cash payments to avoid GST.

and most customers are opting for cash payments to avoid additional taxes and charges," he said.