Smuggler’s choice: Azaadi VAT se
Requests, incentives, warnings, raids, nothing but nothing can desist our coutrymen from trying their hand at tax evasion. The richer the man, finer his skills of escaping the tax dragnet. Now, instances of Kanpur based jewellers smuggling gold from Rajasthan and Maharashtra, to avoid paying tax, is giving the cops as well as the state government sleepless nights.
The Value Added Tax (VAT) has a significant role to play in luring the city jewellers to the path of crime. In the BJP governed states VAT is negligible. Therefore, in Rajasthan one has to pay only 20 paise, while in UP the VAT amounts to Re 1 on purchase of gold jewellery worth Rs 100. During transaction of large quantities of gold, the aggregate of VAT payable is far higher in UP compared to Rajasthan. “If VAT is implemented uniformly in every state, inter-state smuggling of gold can be curbed,” says jeweller Ravi Kapoor.
Previously gold rates use to differ from country to country. Due to this smuggling of gold was rampant in India. The yellow metal was smuggled into the Indian market via Kathmandu. “After the standardization of gold rates in the international market gold smuggling almost came to an end. But implementation of VAT in states other than those governed by the BJP once again has provided impetus to inter-state gold smuggling,” informs a senior official of Central Excise and Custom Department on condition of anonymity.