Ever since the onset of Goods and Services Tax (GST) on 1 July 2017, several dubious WhatsApp messages have been sparking confusion among people about different rates.
D-Mart, the supermarket retail chain owned and operated by Avenue Supermarts Ltd, became the latest target of WhatsApp hoaxsters this time.
The WhatsApp forward prescribes its own GST rates for purchases above Rs 1,000, with a higher rate for each ‘slab’. It recommends shoppers get separate bills of Rs 1,000 for purchases above this amount to presumably attract no GST.
A bizarre suggestion because apart from being a cumbersome exercise for the customer, it would also be impractical for any department store to implement as it would create a bottleneck at the checkout counter.
The forward has gone so viral that it prompted the company to publish a denial on its Facebook page. D-Mart stated that GST rates have nothing to do with the value of the bill, but instead depends on the products purchased. The tax rates for products are as decided by the government.
The receipt below of purchases from a D-Mart outlet in Mumbai on 10 July (post GST) shows the application of GST on different products.
As seen, GST is not applied on the total bill amount, but on each product.
In the bill, purchases have been made of products falling in the GST slabs of 0 percent, 2.5 percent, 6 percent and 9 percent of SGST and CGST each. (SGST refers to State GST and CGST refers to Central GST).
(This article was first published on BOOM and has been republished with permission.)
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)