Failure to Pass GST Benefit Results in Profiteering Violation Recalculation

The Authority directed the DGAP to recompute the amount of profiteering. The Respondent failed to pass on the benefit of the reduced GST rate to recipients by keeping ticket prices unchanged through increasing base prices, violating Section 171 of the CGST Act, 2017. The profiteered amount was recalculated to Rs. 1,29,243/- for the period from 1-1-2019 to 30-6-2019, excluding the period from 11-3-2019 to 8-5-2019 when the base prices were reduced in line with the tax rate reduction.

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Issues Involved:

1. Whether the GST rate on "Services by way of admission to the exhibition of cinematograph films where the price of admission ticket was less than one hundred rupees" was reduced from 18% to 12% w.e.f. 1-1-2019.
2. Whether the benefit of such reduction in the rate of GST had been passed on by the Respondent to his recipients, in terms of Section 171 of the CGST Act, 2017.
3. Whether the Respondent increased the base prices of the tickets, thereby nullifying the impact of the tax rate reduction.
4. Whether the Respondent's arguments and evidence provided were adequate to refute the allegations of profiteering.
5. Whether the recomputation of the profiteered amount should be limited to a specific period.

Detailed Analysis:

Issue 1: Reduction in GST Rate

The DGAP confirmed that the Central Government, on the recommendation of the GST Council, reduced the GST rate on "Services by way of admission to the exhibition of cinematograph films where the price of admission ticket was less than one hundred rupees" from 18% to 12% w.e.f. 1-1-2019, as per Notification No. 27/2018-Central Tax (Rate), dated 31-12-2018. This fact was not contested by the Respondent.

Issue 2: Passing on the Benefit of GST Rate Reduction

The investigation revealed that the Respondent did not pass on the benefit of the GST rate reduction to the recipients. Despite the reduction in GST, the Respondent kept the final price of the movie tickets unchanged by increasing the base prices of the tickets. This contravened Section 171 of the CGST Act, 2017, which mandates that any reduction in the tax rate must result in a commensurate reduction in prices.

Issue 3: Increase in Base Prices

The DGAP's investigation found that the Respondent increased the base prices of the admission tickets for First Class and Second Class categories when the GST rate was reduced from 18% to 12%. The base prices increased from Rs. 67.80 to Rs. 71.43 for First Class tickets and from Rs. 42.37 to Rs. 44.65 for Second Class tickets, thereby nullifying the impact of the tax rate reduction.

Issue 4: Respondent's Arguments and Evidence

The Respondent argued that:

- The reduced rate of tax was charged from the customers.
- No benefit of ITC was accrued due to the nature of the service.
- The ticket prices were changed based on various factors like the age of the movie and performance.
- The difference amount accrued to the producer/distributor, not to the Respondent.

However, the DGAP found these arguments unsubstantiated. The investigation showed that the prices of the tickets remained more or less uniform post-tax rate reduction and were not dynamically changed as claimed by the Respondent. No documentary evidence was provided to support the Respondent's claims about the influence of producers/distributors on ticket pricing.

Issue 5: Recomputing the Profiteered Amount

The DGAP acknowledged that the Respondent reduced the base prices of First Class and Second Class tickets during the period from 11-3-2019 to 8-5-2019. Therefore, this period was excluded from the calculation of the profiteered amount. The total profiteered amount was recomputed to Rs. 1,29,243/- for the period from 1-1-2019 to 30-6-2019, excluding the period from 11-3-2019 to 8-5-2019.

Conclusion:

The Authority directed the DGAP to recompute the amount of profiteering in line with the observations made. The Respondent was found to have contravened the provisions of Section 171 of the CGST Act, 2017, by not passing on the benefit of the reduction in the GST rate to the recipients. The recomputation of the profiteered amount should exclude the period from 11-3-2019 to 8-5-2019, during which the Respondent had reduced the base prices of the tickets commensurately.

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