Tribunalisation of GST justice necessitates tweaks

The inconsistency in the execution of the appeal mechanism as contemplated in the statute needs to be set right at the earliest, both at the Centre and the state level

The Union Cabinet last week approved of a proposal to set up a national Bench of the Goods & Services Tax Appellate Tribunal (GSTAT) in the capital, an expected outcome in line with the decision of the 28th GST Council Meeting of July 2018. It also approved of the setting up of a centralised Appellate Authority for Advance Ruling (AAAR), which would decide those issues where there are divergent rulings at the state level. The GSTAT National Bench is the first appellate tribunal under the GST regime, akin to the Central Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) adjudicating disputes