Mumbai: On the day the GST Council is meeting to discuss how to go ahead with GST, the indirect tax regime, as per the plans, Kerala finance minister Thomas Isaac has come down heavily on demonetisation saying the move was a disruptive act done without strategic vision or planning, CNBC-TV18 quoted him as saying.
He said that the note ban will adversely affect small and medium businesses and will cause a 2 per cent fall in GDP that means a fall in production of Rs 2.5 lakh crore.
“According to data, banks have received Rs 11.5 lakh crore in deposits after demonetisation. What the government is going to do with such a huge amount is not clear,” Isaac said.
Isaac slammed the planning body NITI Aayog saying it cannot dabble with state taxes.
He said the issue of cross empowerment would be discussed at GST Council meeting. “The Centre will have to concede its (Kerala’s) position with respect to cross empowerment,” Isaac told CNBC-TV18.
Isaac also criticised government’s steps towards making India a cashless economy saying, “It is strange that a government promoting plastic money is now printing a Rs 2,000 note.”
