Lok Sabha passes Bill on service tax

NEW DELHI: The Lok Sabha on Tuesday adopted a Constitution amendment Bill seeking to include "taxes on services" in Union list.
In the division, 333 voted for the Constitution (Ninety-Fifth) amendment bill and ten against.
The AIADMK opposed the measure insisting the VAT-related legislation fell exclusively within the domain of states.
Replying to a brief discussion, Finance Minister Jaswant Singh said the bill, which would pave the way for inclusion of services within the purview of VAT, has been brought forward as "taxes on services" was not specifically mentioned in any entry in the Union List or the State List of the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution.
Participating in a brief discussion, members generally hailed the measure saying it would help in significant augmentation of revenues of the states in accordance with the proposed law and pave the way for eventual inclusion of services within the purview of state-level VAT.
Opposing the Bill, V Saroja (AIADMK) said her party was of the view that the measure came under the domain of the states and not of the Centre.
P K Bansal (Cong), Rupchand Pal (CPI-M), M V V S Murthy (TDP), Anadi Sahu and Kirit Somaiya (both BJP) wanted Government to ensure avoidance of double taxation while collecting the levy and should leave out menial and trivial services from its purview to help the common man.
Murthy wanted that the revenue from the tax should be distributed among the states and the Centre in the ratio of 5:3.