Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has responded to a social media post that claimed fraudulent activities in the GST registration process.
Her statement came after a LinkedIn post by Vinod Gupta, founder and director of VG Learning Destination, went viral. Mr Gupta alleged that he would be forced to "commit a crime" by paying a bribe to get a registration number for his firm.
Referring to the post, Ms Sitharaman said, "It is our responsibility to serve taxpayers. But while doing that, we must be honest and transparent, because that's how we earn their trust. I believe the GST Board and officers will continue to be careful and quick in responding to people's issues."
Mr Gupta, in his now-viral LinkedIn post, claimed that he hasn't received the GST number even though he applied for it 20 days ago. He wrote, "Tomorrow I will commit a crime. Giving and taking bribery: both are crimes. I applied for a GST registration number for a firm in which my wife and daughter are partners 20 days ago."
He mentioned, "Objections started coming in. Till today, the number has not been allotted. So, I've decided to get the GST number tomorrow. I know I will get it after committing the crime."
The post quickly garnered social media users' attention, including Tax Compliance and Litigation Expert Abhishek Raja Ram. He tagged the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) and alleged corruption happening in the GST registration process. He even called out the officials handling the department and urged the top management to interfere.
His post read, "CBIC has no idea of the ground reality of corruption in GST Registrations. Their Executive Officers are so corrupt that even VG Sir has to vent out his frustration. Better top-level Officers take control of Registrations to save the country from corruption."
The CBIC was quick to respond to his post. The board clarified that Mr Gupta filed an application process on May 26 and was assigned to the Delhi State GST jurisdiction and not the Central GST authorities.
It further stated that the application was processed immediately; however, a query was raised because a designation was missing on the rent agreement. This was informed to the applicant; however, there has been no response from his side yet.
CBIC has also urged Raja Ram not to circulate wrong information on social media without knowing the facts.
