5 years of GST: Profiteering charges leave many companies perplexed

No structured guidelines for firms to avoid profiteering; standard method to compute undue profits, say experts

The National Anti-Profiteering Authority (NAA) is hearing a case against a real estate company, which has allegedly not been passing on the benefit of input tax credit (ITC), arising out of goods and services tax (GST), to homebuyers.

The investigating body for this -- the Directorate Generate of Anti-Profiteering (DGAP) -- shot off e-mails to more than 500 buyers, asking them if they got the benefit of ITC through cost reduction, and whether the discount was communicated to them as rate reduction due to GST. Over 50 responses were received. Of those, 40 said they had benefited from GST rate