Regarding the issues of the portal, the assessees always have a concern, particularly when the last date is arriving. State Finance Minister Pankaj Chaudhary responded to questions posed by Lok Sabha MPs by emphasizing that the Goods and Services Tax (GST) system is a reliable IT infrastructure that has successfully implemented the GST legislation, regulations, and procedures.
Additionally stated that It consistently integrates with diverse IT systems of States, CBIC, RBI, Banks, Principal Chief Controller of Accounts, Accounting authorities of States, and other stakeholders. Nearly 90 lakh GSTR-1 returns are filed per month.
In his response, the Minister further noted that the GST system has a strong grievance resolution process that enables taxpayers to lodge their complaints through the GRP portal. No large fines have been recorded, and the number of complaints has steadily decreased.
The Minister provided figures revealing that in the Fiscal Year 2022-23, just 25,982 tickets were raised out of a total of 112,086,754 GSTR-1 filings, a considerable decrease from the previous Financial Year. In the previous fiscal year, 36,479 tickets were raised out of 102,514,276 filings. In addition, the GSTR-1 filing has been dramatically increased in the fiscal year 2022-23.
The minister provided the following details in response to the query on the different measures the government has taken to address the problem:
The government has taken a number of measures, among others, to resolve taxpayer complaints and inform them of new features available on GST websites.
- AI-based Chatbot
- Specialized GST Complaints Portal
- Presenting Webinars to spread awareness of newly announced GST portal functionality
- Tax advice sent to taxpayers via mail and social media sites like Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube
- Providing instructional and learning resources on the GST portal, such as the Help section, FAQs, and User manuals.
Lok Sabha MPs Kuruva Gorntla Madhav and Dr Beesetti Venkata Satyavathi raised the questions. Regarding portal bugs, the ministry responded to all the issues posed by the MPs.
As of June 2023, 14,227 GST appeals are still unresolved, according to the Finance Ministry. As demanded by the states, the GST appellate tribunal bench would also be established gradually. The minister further stated that the GST Law does not recognize the idea of an amicable settlement and that appeals are resolved in accordance with the law.
