Import duty reduction on gold linked to reduced smuggling; enforcement targets porous borders and air routes.
Decline in illicit gold imports followed the July 2024 reduction of import duty to 6 percent, while customs reported continued airport seizures and substantial annual seizures and arrests. Enforcement focuses on international passengers, commercial cargo and porous borders-notably eastern borders-where air routes, inventive concealment methods and evolving transit hubs in Middle Eastern, South East Asian, African and Central Asian airports sustain smuggling risks.

Biometric Aadhaar Authentication: appointment-based GSK verification now required for GST registration in select jurisdictions.
An amendment permits identification on the GST portal by selection for Biometric Aadhaar Authentication with a photograph and original document verification; GSTN has rolled out this functionality in Maharashtra and Lakshadweep. After Form GST REG-01 applicants receive an intimation e-mail with either an Aadhaar OTP Authentication link or a booking link for a GSK appointment. If appointment-based verification is required, applicants must book a slot, attend the GSK with appointment confirmation, jurisdiction details, original Aadhaar and PAN, and original uploaded documents. ARNs are issued after completion of biometric authentication and document verification.

Economic favouritism alleged: government accused of shifting tax burdens to the poor while privileging corporate interests.
Allegations of economic favouritism characterise the critique of the Union Budget: taxpayers purportedly fund corporate loan waivers and benefit reductions for the wealthy through lower corporate taxes, while subsidies on essentials remain constrained. The charge frames these fiscal choices as shifting burdens onto poorer citizens. The critique also invokes "half federalism," alleging partisan divergence in budgetary allocations that advantages aligned states and disadvantages opposition-led states, and notes layered indirect taxes that raise the effective tax burden on ordinary consumers.

E-Way Bill exemption for Chapter 71 goods reaffirmed; EWB generation not required except where state law mandates.
Clarification states that E-Way Bill exemption under Rule 138(14) for Chapter 71 goods (excluding HSN 7117) removes the requirement to generate EWBs; an optional portal facility for "EWB for Gold" that had allowed voluntary generation has been withdrawn. However, intrastate movement may be subject to state-level EWB mandates, and taxpayers and transporters must comply with any such state requirements while consulting GST Helpdesk or jurisdictional tax authorities for further guidance.

Transitional credit dispute: GST penalty imposed for TRAN-1 claim, company to appeal the levy administratively.
A Deputy Commissioner order under the Uttar Pradesh GST Act, 2017 levied a penalty of Rs 41,99,465 equivalent to the tax demand for transitional credit claimed in form TRAN 1; the taxpayer has received the order and intends to appeal the penalty to the appropriate authority.

Property title security and strategic connectivity drive value claims for a new residential development in Vandalur.
G Square Regal Park is advertised as a mixed residential development offering plots, apartments and villas in Vandalur with specified size ranges and launch pricing below prevailing market rates. The developer attributes affordability to land aggregation and scale, and highlights multimodal connectivity via GST Road, proximity to IT/industrial hubs, and planned regional infrastructure. The release emphasizes transactional assurances including worry-free title, property security and committed delivery, and cites the developer's track record and claim of no legal issues to support value and investor appeal.

Customs duty rationalisation: India simplifies tariff bands and aligns average rates with regional peers to boost trade competitiveness.
Central tariff policy reform reduces complexity by consolidating basic customs duty bands into eight rates, including a zero rate, and lowering the national average customs rate toward ASEAN levels. Statutory slab reductions are paired with cess adjustments that in many cases keep effective duties unchanged while simplifying administration. Budget measures provide targeted duty reliefs on critical minerals and on waste and scrap to support domestic manufacturing, recycling, and integration into global supply chains.

GST growth: Punjab outpaced national rate as compliance measures boosted state GST and excise collections.
State net GST collections increased 11.87% year on year up to January, with January itself up 9.73%, placing the state among the top three general category states exceeding national GST growth. Excise collections rose 15.33% year on year up to January. The finance minister credited the excise and taxation department's measures-closing loopholes and stepping up checks on tax evasion-for the improved revenue mobilisation.

Track and Trace mechanism for evasion prone goods mandates digital unique identification marking with penalties to enforce compliance.
The Budget proposes a statutory framework to implement a Track and Trace Mechanism in GST law for evasion prone goods, defining Unique Identification Marking to include digital stamps, digital marks or similar secure, non removable markings and introducing penalty provisions to enforce compliance with marking and tracking requirements.

Accountability demanded as politicians shift blame while fiscal choices and hiring practices leave households and jobs unaddressed.
Priyanka Gandhi criticised leaders for blaming predecessors to avoid responsibility, argued income tax relief did not benefit most people, and said GST and omission of inflation in budget harmed households and small businesses. She asserted thousands of public posts remain vacant and are being filled through lateral entry and contractual appointments, and contrasted current governance unfavourably with earlier public-sector led infrastructure and employment generation.

GST revenue growth signals stronger collections and higher refunds, boosting net receipts and indicating improved compliance.
Gross GST revenue rose year on year by about twelve percent in January driven by higher domestic supplies and a larger increase in import GST; refunds issued in the month also increased substantially. After adjustment for refunds, net GST receipts registered a positive year on year gain. Industry commentators linked the collections growth to firmer economic activity and sustained compliance, while noting statewise variation in growth and potential improvements in refund processing efficiency.

Full foreign investment in insurance raises concerns over unchanged GST and wider fiscal, inflation and social-service impacts.
Approval of full foreign investment in the insurance sector is criticised for permitting complete foreign equity while leaving insurance-related Goods and Services Tax unchanged, raising questions about who benefits. The piece links this decision to cuts in social services, housing and welfare allocations, concern over unchecked inflation and fiscal borrowing to meet deficit targets, and doubts that tax-threshold increases or current measures will materially boost real incomes or manufacturing growth.

Budget neglect of farmers and job creation criticized as lacking targeted relief or employment measures.
Opposition parties labelled the Union Budget disappointing for Gujarat, citing no substantive relief for farmers or employment generation, absence of GST waiver on fertiliser, limited agricultural measures beyond higher credit limits, and conditional tax-exemption announcements. They also criticised the lack of support for key regional industries, reductions in allocations to national institutions with fee increases, and argued that MSME measures and stipends alone will not create jobs without demand-side tax and fuel relief.

Gross and net GST collections for January 2025, with refunds and state settlements, show provisional growth in revenues.
The release presents provisional January 2025 GST receipts: gross collections by CGST, SGST, IGST and CESS from domestic activity and imports; domestic and export/import refunds; and resulting net GST revenue monthly and year to date. It includes state wise growth rates and pre/post settlement SGST allocations showing the SGST portion of IGST settled to States/UTs, with figures subject to finalisation.

Just and proportional resource distribution demanded to correct perceived discriminatory fiscal allocations and ensure equitable state funding.
Karnataka demands immediate release of withheld and underpaid central grants and MSP dues, revision of tax devolution and capital assistance formulas, merger or abolition of cesses into the divisible tax pool or permission for an additional State GST, constitutional amendment to raise the Professional Tax ceiling, extension of Ayushman Bharat to all NFSA eligible families, revised disaster relief allocation criteria, full funding and state consultation for Centrally Sponsored Schemes, and a special grant for Western Ghats development.

GST reform is urgent: Economic Survey urged Ease of Doing Business 2.0 but neglected GST overhaul and tax enforcement reform.
The Economic Survey calls for an Ease of Doing Business 2.0 but is criticised for omitting a comprehensive GST 2.0 and for not addressing the decade-long 'tax terrorism'; it affirms MGNREGA's role in rural asset creation while noting government measures that constrain it, raises concerns about regulator integrity amid growing investor participation, and stresses that industrial policy should use protection to make MSMEs competitive rather than shelter monopolies, also urging attention to environmental public-health under an Ease of Living 1.0.

Legacy cases resolution scheme expands to include non-subsumed petroleum tax disputes, streamlining backlog resolution and revenue recovery.
The State approved the Himachal Pradesh Sadhbhawana Legacy Cases Resolution Scheme, 2025, extending scope to include disputes under non-subsumed enactments and addressing petroleum-product cases under the State Value Added Tax Act through 2017-18, aiming to reduce legacy tax litigation backlog and increase revenue realization.

GST fraud uncovered involving fake invoices and fraudulent input tax credit, prompting arrests and multi-city raids.
The DGGI Bengaluru unit uncovered a large scale GST fraud involving fabricated invoices and fraudulent availing and passing of Input Tax Credit, with fake invoices totaling a multi hundred crore value and fake ITC identified separately. Investigators found at least fifteen non operational companies engaged in circular trading to inflate turnover, several listed on stock exchanges to facilitate share price manipulation and exit, common IP addresses used for filing GST returns, and original documents recovered across multiple premises; two suspects have been arrested and one remains at large.

GST exemption clarified: penal charges by regulated lenders are not taxable and small value payment settlements are exempted.
GST does not apply to penal charges levied by RBI regulated banks and NBFCs, as these charges are treated as contractual breach charges rather than taxable consideration. CBIC further clarifies that RBI regulated Payment Aggregators qualify for a GST exemption limited to the payment settlement function for single transaction card payments within a small value threshold, while Payment Gateway services that only provide routing and do not handle funds remain outside this exemption.

Biometric Aadhaar authentication now required for certain GST registrations, and appointment-based GSK verification follows, with OTP alternative available.
An amendment to Rule 8 enables Biometric-based Aadhaar Authentication and document verification via GSTN. After filing Form GST REG-01 applicants receive either an OTP Aadhaar link or a link to book a GST Suvidha Kendra appointment; if booked, they must attend the GSK with the appointment confirmation, jurisdiction details, original Aadhaar and PAN, and original uploaded documents. Biometric authentication and verification at the GSK are required for individuals in REG-01, and ARNs are generated only after these processes are completed.