GST enforcement: A fine balance in catching fraud, not harassing taxpayers

The government has tightened GST norms. But some of the changes have caused 'inconvenience' to taxpayers, to say the least

It’s a tough balancing act for the Central government.

On the one hand, it is dealing with fraudulent activities of over Rs 50,000 crore related to goods and services tax (GST). On the other hand, it is facing criticism for the stringent measures it has taken to curb fraud because it could increase the compliance burden for honest taxpayers.After giving leeway in the initial years, the Centre in November 2020 started a drive in coordination with the states to deal with fraud and evasion. In the past 18 months, it has detected fake input tax credit (ITC) of over Rs 50,000